CAMBRIDGE, OHIO—On a day very soon Ohio State Park Lodges will be buying most of the food served in its restaurants from sustainable sources, generating zero hazardous waste and significantly decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. At least that is the goal for five Ohio State Park Lodges operated by concessioner Xanterra Parks & Resorts. “Our sustainability practices permeate every aspect of our operations—rooms, restaurants, gift shops, swimming pools, marinas—you name it, and as new technologies and products become available, we take a fresh look at what we are doing to see if we can improve upon it,” said Greg Woodland, regional...

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—Ellerman House has launched an initiative to become Cape Town’s most eco-friendly boutique hotel. Through newly implemented green projects such as solar panels, LED light bulbs, heat pumps, earthworm farms and recycling systems, the property aims to be Cape Town’s leader in eco-friendly luxury hospitality by September 2013.In order to measure the carbon footprint for the entire property, including the main house, villas, spa, art gallery and all administrative housing and offices, Ellerman House hired an energy efficiency company, BrightBlack, as a consultant and to administer extensive energy testing. The staff at Ellerman House began taking...

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—Mario and Annemarie Delicio of Dematech are the owners behind Hotel Verde. Dedicated and passionate about sustainability, they have transformed what was initially just a sensible business proposition into a showcase for some of the most advanced environmentally conscious technological installations as well as construction and operation practices in the world.“We have a responsibility as a company, as an employer and as a visitor on this planet to live as sustainably as possible,” says Mario Delicio. “This is the only way we can survive long-term and hand over to our children in a responsible manner.”Construction on...

HIGHLAND PARK, ILL.—T2 Site Amenities, a leading provider of upscale recycling bins and planters, has just released its San Mateo recycling bin/planter series. According to Lori Tilkin, president of T2, “The San Mateo series was designed to address both indoor and outdoor uses. Many customers are looking for a cohesive look for all of their indoor and outdoor recycling bins and planters. This series does the job with ease.”The San Mateo series is made in the United States and is constructed from fiberglass. One hotel property in Maui purchased a large number of these units because they do not...

SEATTLE—The DoubleTree by Hilton Seattle Airport and the Hilton Seattle Airport & Conference Center have announced a partnership with Food Lifeline to secure food and reduce hunger in the Seattle communities. The collaboration will enable the DoubleTree and Hilton Seattle Airport hotels to collect safe, surplus food from events and conferences that would otherwise be thrown away and deliver it to those in need.“During each conference there is the potential for large amounts of food to go to waste, while at the same time many people in the Seattle region do not have enough to eat,” said Frank Welton,...

BOULDER, COLO.—A kid’s voice can go a long way. Just ask Milo Cress, an 11-year-old from Boulder, Colo. Two years ago, Milo noticed that restaurants were automatically giving straws to customers—straws that ended up in the trash and ultimately the landfill. That did not sit right with him. The environmentalist that he is—he developed a solar-powered popcorn machine when he was six—Milo decided something needed to be done. With the help of his family he founded the Be Straw Free Campaign, an effort to encourage foodservice businesses to either eliminate straws altogether or at least transition to an “offer...

ANAHEIM, CALIF.— Disneyland Resort recently was honored by the nonprofit organization Clean the World Foundation, Inc. for its environmental efforts to recycle partially used soap and bottled bath amenities. The nonprofit organization sanitizes, repackages and distributes the amenities—which may otherwise be discarded by the hospitality industry—to people in need around the world, helping to prevent hygiene-related illnesses. Shawn Seipler, CEO and co-founder of Clean the World, recognized the Disneyland Resort at a ceremony, acknowledging the work of all three Resort hotels and their collective donation of nearly 20,000 pounds of amenities in 2012. Combined, the Disneyland Hotel, Disney’s Paradise...

TRAVELERS REST, S.C.—EnviroPure Systems Inc., a world leader in the development of alternative technologies for organic food waste disposal, announces the appointment of Stefan Kahl as national sales manager. Kahn comes from the Atlanta division of U.S. Foods, where he has been specialist/category manager of non-foods/equipment & supplies for the past nine years. With a degree in hotel and restaurant management, a diversity of hands-on experience in the hospitality industry and longstanding relationships with key accounts such as Hilton and Marriott, Stefan brings a wealth of marketing knowledge and expertise to the company, which has recently moved its headquarters...

ALPHARETTA, GA.—BEST WESTERN PLUS The Inn at King of Prussia, a 168-room property owned and operated by RWK Enterprises, Inc., has completed a furniture refinishing and armoire conversion project led by The Refinishing Touch. Within 30 days, The Refinishing Touch restored headboards, nightstands, side chairs, benches, desks, micro fridge cabinets and armoires in 100 rooms throughout the establishment.With 2,500 square feet of meeting space added in 2011 and only 20 miles from Philadelphia, BEST WESTERN PLUS The Inn at King of Prussia caters to a large audience of corporate professionals. The most recent furniture renovations were a result of...

TARRYTOWN, N.Y.—More than 75 staff, associates, and managers at Castle Hotel & Spa gathered on Earth Day, April 22, and filled more than 4,000 gallons of trash into 20-gallon bio bags that included disposable bottles, debris, trash, plastic bags and general yard waste from the historic 11-acre property in Tarrytown including the one-mile hiking path and bordering streets of Benedict Avenue and Martling Avenue.General Manager Gilbert Baeriswil welcomed the 75 employees of Castle Hotel & Spa for the “first annual Earth Day Clear and Clean” and handed out commemorative tee-shirts for the all-day event and shared sponsored coffee and...