Because the dates for the National Restaurant Association’s (NRA) annual Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show in Chicago fell right on the heels of the HD 2008 Expo & Conference this year, I was unable to attend. However, there was an announcement made at the restaurant show that you should know about—especially if you operate any kind of food and beverage operation. The NRA announced the launch of “Conserve: Solutions for Sustainability,” an initiative designed to support the United States’ nearly one million restaurant and foodservice locations as they become more eco-friendly. “We are launching Conserve to raise awareness and provide resources...

WISCONSIN DELLS, WISC.—Kalahari Resorts’ longstanding commitment to energy efficient operations continues as it adds the AquaRecycle system, a laundry water recycling and filtration system that will allow Kalahari Resorts to reuse 70 percent of its laundry water. The AquaRecycle system’s chemical-free filtration and treatment recycle process will provide clean, disinfected and pre-heated water to the laundry systems at Kalahari Resort properties in Wisconsin Dells, Wisc., and Sandusky, Ohio, and eventually a third resort in Fredericksburg, Va. Home to a 740-room hotel in Wisconsin and an 884-room hotel in Ohio, Kalahari Resorts estimates the AquaRecycle system, which is expected to be...

CHICAGO—The InterContinental Chicago, a 792-room hotel located on the Windy City’s Magnificent Mile, has just obtained its Energy Star rating from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy. The hotel, in a building constructed in 1929, is the first hotel in Chicago to earn the rating. The energy performance of commercial and industrial facilities is scored on a 1 to 100 scale and those facilities that achieve a score of 75 or higher are eligible for the Energy Star, indicating that they are among the top 25 percent of facilities in the country for energy performance. The...

TROY, OHIO—Hobart’s next generation of conveyor warewashers, the CLe, is more productive, more energy efficient and uses less space than other conveyor warewashers in the industry. Incorporating the latest warewashing technology in one machine, the new CLe delivers clean and sanitized dishware at the lowest cost. The new CLe is Energy Star qualified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its energy- and water-saving advantages. Final rinse water usage is as low as .39 gallons per rack. “Hobart’s new CLe is designed to help foodservice and food retail operations enhance performance, minimize waste and save on valuable floor space,”...

NORTH OLMSTED, OHIO—Moen Inc. has announced its membership in the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The mission of USGBC, a nonprofit organization, is to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life. “The USGBC is expanding our country’s green building practices and education, and Moen feels strongly in enhancing these pursuits, as well,” said Dennis McKinney, Moen’s director of environmental health. “Sustainability and environmental responsibility are increasingly important issues in today’s society, and we hope our membership in the USGBC will...

VISTA, CALIF.—Waterless Co., LLC announced that it has updated its website’s listing of the company’s distributors and representatives in the United States as well as countries around the world. The update is necessary, according to Klaus Reichardt, managing partner and founder of Waterless Co., because several new distributor/representatives have recently been added. “We now have representation in pretty much every state in the U.S.,” Reichardt says. “And we have expanded our worldwide representation to such countries as Guatemala, Malaysia, India, New Zealand, Jamaica, and others.” According to Reichardt, the expansion of representation is the result of two key developments that have...

ANDERSON, CALIF.—Gaia at Anderson, a new 122-room green hotel, has opened here. It is the second Gaia hotel in California to be developed and opened by Wen-I Chang. The first was the Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa in American Canyon. That 133-room property opened in October 2006. Chang is also developing a third hotel in Merced, Calif., a 141-room property. Chang expects the Gaia at Anderson hotel to achieve a LEED Silver or Gold rating from the U.S. Green Building Council. The Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa was the first U.S. hotel to earn LEED Gold. In building...

WISCONSIN DELLS, WISC.—Kalahari Resorts’ long-standing commitment to energy efficient operations continues as it adds the AquaRecycle system, a laundry water recycling and filtration system which will allow Kalahari Resorts to reuse 70 percent of its laundry water. The AquaRecycle system’s chemical-free filtration and treatment recycle process will provide clean, disinfected and pre-heated water to the laundry systems at Kalahari Resort properties in Wisconsin Dells, Wisc., Sandusky, Ohio, and eventually a third resort in Fredericksburg, Va. Home to a 740-room hotel in Wisconsin and an 884-room hotel in Ohio, Kalahari Resorts estimates the AquaRecycle system, which is expected to be operating...

LAS VEGAS—The Palazzo Las Vegas, a Las Vegas Sands Corp. property, announced that the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) made its green status official with the presentation of a Silver LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certificate at an award ceremony held on Wednesday, April 9. Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons and David E. Rodgers, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency at the U.S. Department of Energy, were also on hand to honor this accomplishment. During the ceremony Governor Gibbons issued a proclamation in recognition of The Palazzo’s commitment to energy conservation. The DOE presented The Palazzo with “The Energy...

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA.—WaterPure International, Inc. announced an agreement to place two Atmospheric Water Generators (AWGs) test units at a major international hotel chain. The two AWGs are part of a WaterPure environmental green initiative program targeting the lodging industry. The company is offering AWGs for evaluation at various hotels and expects to strategically position units throughout the lodging industry. AWGs from WaterPure produce three to five gallons of absolutely pure chilled or heated healthy drinking water each day using a condensation process that extracts moisture from the atmosphere. Similar in appearance to a traditional bottled water stand, the AWGs contradict...