According to the OSHA Guide to The Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS): “The basic goal of hazard communication is to ensure that employers, employees and the public are provided with adequate, practical, reliable and comprehensible information on the hazards of chemicals, so that they can take effective preventive and protective measure for their health and safety.”OSHA states: “The GHS …the importance of training all target audiences to recognize and interpret label and/or SDS information, and to take appropriate action in response to chemical hazards,” and that “training requirements should be appropriate for and...

The American Journal of Infection Control published a peer-reviewed study in October 2011, “Reduction in the Microbial Load on High-Touch Surfaces,” that clearly demonstrates that TANCS® dry steam vapor “is capable of rapid, chemical-free surface disinfection.”The MondoVap with TANCS “consistently reduced total microbial and pathogen loads…to below detection in most instances,” but by more than 90 percent in other cases.The conclusion? “The steam vapor system provides a means to reduce levels of microorganisms on…surfaces without the drawbacks associated with chemicals.”

The MondoVap TANCS® dry steam vapor system opens up carpet fibers for better vacuuming, a process termed “Steam Assisted Vacuuming Intervention” or SAVI (pronounced “savvy”). Vacuuming, then steaming, followed by re-vacuuming, removes a great deal of soil from carpet, much more than without steaming. The experience at the Loden bears this out.

Every now and then, since launching Green Lodging News in the summer of 2006, I would hear from the PGA National Resort & Spa’s Kathy McGuire. She would write with a question or comment. I always appreciated her feedback. I knew she played a significant role in helping to green the resort that is well known for its five championship golf courses and for hosting the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic (February 27 to March 2 this year). I finally had an opportunity to interview Kathy this past week and was pleased to learn that she recently had been promoted...

MINNEAPOLIS—Just prior to the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group’s annual business conference, held earlier this month, Green Lodging News checked in with the Minneapolis-based company’s Brenda Schultz, Director Responsible Business, for an update on the Carlson Rezidor’s green activities in the Americas. Schultz addressed topics ranging from green certification to purchasing to corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Together, Carlson Rezidor’s efforts point to an increased emphasis on sustainability.Carlson Rezidor now has 618 hotels in the Americas. The company manages 20 of those properties. Of the 618, 125 have some type of eco-label, whether from a national or state level certification...

FISH CAMP, CALIF.—Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts has earned double Silver LEED certification at Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite, an all-season resort located just outside of Yosemite National Park in Fish Camp, Calif. Both certifications follow a yearlong project that expanded Tenaya’s banquet, event and meeting spaces and office area, plus added a destination spa.Delaware North, which owns and operates Tenaya, followed a process laid out by its environmental program, GreenPath, to ensure environmental stewardship and measurable green practices. The company worked with Layton Construction Company and architect Peter Grove of Collaborative Design Studio.The Silver LEED-certified expansion brings Tenaya...

HONOLULU—In its ongoing efforts to “go green,” Outrigger Hotels and Resorts collected a total of 750,000 recyclables in 2011 at its owned and operated hotels throughout Waikiki, preventing more than 17.5 tons of recyclable bottles and cans from entering Honolulu’s landfill. Additionally, Outrigger then donated more than $18,000 in Hi5 redemption reimbursements to Parents and Children Together (PACT), a nonprofit organization that offers social services to Hawaii families in need.“Giving back to the community and helping to keep our island home unmarked by pollution are tremendously important to Outrigger Hotels and Resorts,” said Barry Wallace, executive vice president of...

DENVER—At an exclusive gathering of national park leaders last month, Xanterra Parks & Resorts executive chefs Peter Pahk and Joe Nobile prepared a special menu featuring sustainable cuisine. Well-suited to the tone of the two-day meeting—a response to the National Park Service’s (NPS) Call to Action report focusing on establishing a mission for the NPS 2016 centennial and beyond—the printed menu included a brief history on the subject of tatanka, the Lakota word for bison. The background on bison was especially fitting because one of the main course choices was Braised Bison Short Ribs. The bison was sourced...

ST. LOUIS—Nix Conference & Meeting Management is leading the charge among meeting planners worldwide to help end child sex trafficking. Nix initiated a first-ever Meeting Planners Code of Conduct this month, Human Trafficking Awareness Month, and is encouraging industry peers and competitors to join them in addressing the issue at every hotel where they do business. “Child sex trafficking is widespread, occurring right now even at luxury hotels in the United States,” said Kimberly Ritter, senior account manager and coordinator of Nix’ initiative to fight child sex trafficking. “Most hotel executives have no idea this exploitation of children exists at...

PARIS—Accor recently decided to assess its environmental impact 15 years after it took a stand and started taking concrete action to embrace sustainable development. The company began working on gauging its environmental footprint at the end of 2010. The study stretches beyond measuring greenhouse-gas emissions to encompass energy and water consumption, water pollution and waste generation throughout lifecycles in the Group. “Four thousand and two hundred hotels in 90 countries, 145,000 employees, 56 million breakfasts a year and almost 545 million liters of water a year all add up to the environmental impact that we are now in a position...