LAS VEGAS—CityCenter announced that it has received three Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certifications from the U.S. Green Building Council for: ARIA Resort’s hotel tower; ARIA Resort’s convention center and theater; and Vdara Hotel. ARIA and Vdara will open in December on the Las Vegas Strip and are the first of CityCenter’s developments to be LEED certified. CityCenter anticipates Gold or Silver LEED certification for its remaining developments which include Las Vegas’ first Mandarin Oriental; Crystals, a 500,000-square-foot retail and entertainment district; Veer Towers, the community’s only strictly residential buildings; and The Harmon (opening late 2010),...

NEW YORK—Green Choice Vendors Distribution, a wholesale distributor of sustainable products and packaging for food service, announces the launch of their online store FoodBizSupply.com. FoodBizSupply.com offers a one stop shop for more than 300 biodegradable and compostable products made from natural renewable resources, like sugarcane bagasse, bamboo fiber and corn. Unlike Styrofoam and petro-based plastics, FoodBizSupply.com products are biodegradable with 70 percent being compostable. Their plant-based offerings combined with biodegradable polymers create products that help reduce the impact on the environment in absolute carbon footprint terms. FoodBizSupply.com products include straws, hot and cold cups, plates, bowls, trays, cutlery, take-out containers,...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes Primo Water as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. Primo is the only nationally distributed bottled water in a bottle made from 100 percent plants, not crude oil. Primo’s natural plant-based material is renewable, compostable (in a commercial facility) and recyclable. When compared with plastic PET bottles, Primo bottles use nearly 50 percent less fossil fuels and energy. According to Primo, if all the plastic bottles on the market in the United States today were made from Ingeo natural plastic instead of petroleum-based plastic, the savings would...

MEMPHIS, TENN.—Home2 Suites by Hilton, the mid-tier extended-stay hotel concept targeting savvy and value-wise extended-stay guests, is utilizing post-consumer recycled content carpeting by InterfaceFLOR, the largest modular carpet tile manufacturer in the world, to outfit its model prototype at the Memphis, Tenn. headquarters. The “Hip and Humble” brand intends to outfit each new location with a variety of eco-friendly design elements and flooring is one spotlighted area. “Home2 Suites is a brand that focuses on marrying style and value while remaining conscious of our environmental impact,” said Bill Duncan, global head, brand management. “InterfaceFLOR shares our commitment and has an...

LAGRANGE, GA.—Acting on input from customers and internal customer care associates, Milliken Floor Covering will eliminate all paper acknowledgements of orders effective August 31. All future notifications will be sent electronically. This move is part of an ongoing effort to eliminate unnecessary paper documents and reduce waste. Not only does this decision save time and paper for printing the documents, it conserves envelopes, postage, toner and energy. Milliken’s Chain of Green partners also will benefit from more timely information exchanges, added convenience, and less confusion due to multiple notice formats. Milliken’s Chain of Green Network encourages sustainability throughout the...

LAGRANGE, OHIO—West Development Group (WDG), a leader in sustainable roofing products and practices, recently implemented a program that recognizes building owners who recycle EPDM rubber roofing membrane. Through the program, WDG is partnering with organizations to implement sustainable roofing practices by recycling EPDM roofs to keep them out of landfills. Participating organizations—from municipalities to owners of commercial buildings and residential apartments— can receive a “Certificate of Environmental Responsibility” in recognition of their environmental practices. WDG has presented more than 50 organizations with “Certificate of Environmental Responsibility” certificates. The Columbus Dispatch, a newspaper based in Columbus, Ohio, is a recent example...

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.