ISLA VERDE, PUERTO RICO—Naya, the leatherback sea turtle adopted by the InterContinental San Juan Resort & Casino, is representing the hotel chain and Puerto Rico in the annual Tour de Turtles Migration Marathon, organized by the Caribbean Conservation Corporation. Earlier this month, 11 sea turtles using satellite-tracking technology began competing in a three-month ocean race to become the first turtle to reach a 1,628-mile distance. Similar to human marathons, each turtle is swimming to raise awareness for a particular “cause” or threat to their survival. This secondary competition, known as Causes Challenge, is designed to see which turtle can...

ORLANDO—Marriott Vacation Club, the premiere timeshare brand of Marriott International, is not allowing a single key card to go to waste. Resorts have begun replacing the 1.2 million plastic key cards purchased annually with those made of 50 percent recycled material, saving approximately four tons of plastic from being dumped in landfills. The new key card is just one of many advances the brand has made to help reduce its global environmental footprint. More than 800,000 guest arrival pieces, which are printed annually in the United States and distributed to owners and guests upon check-in, are now printed on Forest...

FALL RIVER, MASS.— Native Waters, LLC is introducing Native Water, a sustainable bottled water in environmentally friendly packaging. Locally sourced and packaged in biodegradable bottles, Native Water is 100 percent natural, organic and pure while making minimal environmental impact. Native Water is bottled in ENSO Bottles, a biodegradable PET plastic bottle. The bottles are produced with Ecopure, an additive added to the plastic manufacturing process that allows the bottles to be metabolized and neutralized on a microbial level, breaking down the plastic. ENSO bottles maintain the same physical properties and strengths as existing PET plastic bottles yet provide a more...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes ecoLiving Essentials as a Green Product & Service Directory Partner. A woman-owned business, ecoLiving Essentials offers biodegradable shower caps and biodegradable travel booties. The shower caps biodegrade naturally when exposed to microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi. They can be recycled, composted, or mixed in with trash. They are 3.0 millimeters thick and 20 inches in diameter. The travel booties prevent exposure to bacteria and fungi while traveling through airport security. For more information, e-mail sales@ecolivingessentials.com, call (408) 655-0135, or go to www.ecolivingessentials.com.

OSCODA, MICH.—PROTECT-ALL Commercial Flooring, manufactured by Oscoda Plastics, Inc., has joined the ReSource Commercial Flooring Network (RCFN) as a Preferred Supplier. PROTECT-ALL joins a strategic group of manufacturers currently part of RCFN that include the industry’s most recognized brands of commercial flooring, accessories and installation products. “We are excited at the opportunity to be associated with the ReSource Network,” said John Rouse, Oscoda Plastics national sales manager. “Their members, who are some of the top commercial contractors in the country, can help us respond to the growing market demands for our environmentally-friendly flooring products.” PROTECT-ALL is a leading environmentally-friendly recycled vinyl...

LOS ANGELES—Staron Surfaces, a division of worldwide technology leader Samsung, was recently honored with the SCS Material Content Certification for seven of its surfacing products. The certification, issued by Scientific Certification Systems, a leader in certifying independent environmental claims, recognizes Staron for the use of recycled material in several of its acrylic surfacing options. The certification was awarded on the following Staron solid surface products: Staron Pebble Seastar—Minimum 5 percent pre-consumer recycled resin and chip content; Staron Aspen Mine—Minimum 10 percent pre-consumer recycled resin and chip content; Staron Aspen Snow—Minimum 10 percent pre-consumer recycled resin and chip content; Staron...

FALL RIVER, MASS.—Native Waters, LLC has introduced Native Water, a sustainable bottled water in environmentally friendly packaging. Locally sourced and packaged in biodegradable bottles, Native Water is 100 percent natural, organic and pure while making minimal environmental impact. Native Water is bottled in ENSO Bottles, a biodegradable PET plastic bottle. The bottles are produced with Ecopure, an additive added to the plastic manufacturing process that allows the bottles to be metabolized and neutralized on a microbial level, breaking down the plastic. ENSO bottles maintain the same physical properties and strengths as existing PET plastic bottles yet provide a more shelf...

DALLAS—LQ Management LLC, one of the largest operators of limited-service hotels in the United States, has long had an interest in running properties that are energy efficient. It has been an Energy Star partner since 1995, first established a compact fluorescent lighting program for its La Quinta Inns and La Quinta Inns & Suites brands in 1999, has a towel and linen reuse program at its more than 700 hotels, has deployed guestroom energy management systems in more than 160 properties, and is currently working with the American Hotel & Lodging Assn. to follow its 11 Minimum Guidelines for...

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF.—As of July 20, the owners of the Embassy Suites Lake Tahoe Hotel & Ski Resort had spent $250,000 less than they had expected to spend on energy this year. According to David Hansen, director of engineering at the 400-suite property, the hotel could come close to a total of $500,000 in energy savings by the end of 2009. When comparing the first six months of this year against the first six months of last year, electricity consumption dropped by 575,000 kilowatt hours ($98,902 savings) and natural gas consumption by 9,314 dekatherms ($67,709 savings). The hotel...

TORONTO—As part of the brand’s focus and commitment to sustainability, more than 22 Fairmont locations worldwide are reducing their waste disposal costs and supporting the switch to a cleaner economy by manufacturing used kitchen oils into biodiesel, a domestic and renewable fuel derived from natural oils. No one method or solution is universal and biodiesel initiatives vary by property. At The Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa, the hotel gets the job done by partnering with Yokayo Bio-Fuels, a local biodiesel firm, to gather approximately 150 gallons of kitchen grease each quarter, turning it into tallow or feed. The Fairmont...