BETHESDA, MD.—Pebblebrook Hotel Trust announced that it published its fourth annual Environmental Sustainability and Social Responsibility Report covering the company’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance in 2021 and its commitment to environmentally sustainable business practices and social responsibility to its employees and other stakeholders. Pebblebrook’s 2022 ESG Report is aligned with international reporting standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), includes disclosures from the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), and reflects the company’s commitment to understanding and planning for sustainability risks through the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosure (TCFD). The 2022 ESG Report also sets forth the...

INTERNATIONAL REPORT—The Sustainable Hospitality Alliance has updated its Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI) and is calling on the hospitality industry, including corporate clients and booking platforms, to use common measurement metrics to ensure a transparent and globally comparable approach to carbon, water and waste reporting. To remain up to date amidst a changing landscape of climate action, HCMI has been reviewed and improved based on user feedback and research by Cornell University’s Center for Hospitality Research. This version has been updated to align with the latest GHG Protocol guidance and to better incorporate renewable energy with the support of Greenview. Publicly available carbon emissions factors have...

NATIONAL REPORT—Annual changes in U.S. hotel utility costs and in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), or inflation, have historically proven to be strongly correlated. As of August 2022, CBRE is forecasting CPI growth to be 7.7 percent in 2022, followed by another 3.6 percent in 2023. Since inflation has averaged just 2.2 percent since 2000, these inflation projections have hoteliers concerned about operating costs. Given that rising energy costs are a significant driver of the current rise in CPI, hotel managers are especially worried about utility department expenses. Over the past 50 years, utility department expenses have averaged between 3...

BETHESDA, MD.—With a full slate of 2025 environmental impact goals, keeping track of progress is a mammoth job for Marriott International given its approximately 8,000 properties. Leading the collection of that data with a team of experts to help her is Marriott’s Sarah Boll, Senior Director, Energy & Sustainability, U.S./Canada. “We are the ones to gather data. We collect data on carbon intensity, water intensity, and waste,” Boll says. “Managing that data is a global responsibility. We do our best to clean it up and use it for target setting.” As leader of the data acquisition team, Boll overseas data acquisition...

KELOWNA, B.C.—RainStick, the new Canadian clean technology company revolutionizing the water tech space, has been named as one of Cleantech Group’s 2022 Cleantech 50 to Watch. The Cleantech 50 to Watch is an annual list of top global early-stage private companies showcased for their excellence in sustainable innovation. The entrepreneurs on the list are creating new technologies that are poised to address the climate crisis in plastics, regenerating soils, recycling building materials, automating food waste, and transforming solar power. To create the list, inputs are combined from the Cleantech 50 to Watch expert panel of 31 leading investors and corporate and industrial executives active in technology and innovation...

HELSINKE, FINLAND—Scandic Helsinki Hub recently opened its doors in the Finnish capital. Located in downtown Helsinki, the hotel is housed in a 1920s printing house that has been transformed into a large 352-room hotel. Along with unique loft-style rooms, the hotel features inspiring event, meeting and coworking spaces along with a trattoria and bars. Scandic Helsinki Hub is strategically located at the crossroads of downtown Helsinki and the charming Helsinki south district. Vestiges of the former printing house have been elegantly preserved in the design throughout the building, and guests can choose accommodations that offer a variety of special features...

NEW YORK—WINT Water Intelligence, a leader in cutting-edge water management and leak-prevention solutions for construction, commercial, residential and industrial applications, announces the strategic expansion of its leadership team to support the company’s continuing growth to execute on its mission to help organizations reduce water waste, carbon emissions and the environmental footprint of buildings. As part of its ongoing effort to equip companies with innovative tools to address the global water crisis and climate change, WINT has named Gil Briman Chief Operating Officer. He is joined by Josh Edwards, WINT’s new Vice President of North American Sales, and Deborah Margalit, the...

JESSUP, MD.—Baltimore Aircoil Co. (BAC) will showcase innovative commercial and industrial refrigeration solutions at RETA 2022—The Refrigerating Engineers and Technicians Association National Conference, taking place November 8 to 11, 2022, at the Peppermill Resort Spa Casino, Reno, Nev., Booth #216. Highlighted in the booth are the Vertex Evaporative Condenser, TrilliumSeries Adiabatic Condenser, TriArmor Corrosion Protection System, and CXVT Evaporative Condenser with optional ENDURADRIVE Fan System. BAC’s Strategic Accounts Manager Dave Anderson will deliver a Hot Point presentation titled “What’s Keeping YOU Up at Night? A deep dive into condenser reliability” on Tuesday, November 8 from 1:45 to 2:45 p.m. Stop by...

LOS ANGELES—J2 Innovations launched a new white paper, “Smart buildings meet the challenge of water conservation”, outlining the critical role of HVAC systems in better water management and addressing the global issue of water scarcity. With commercial buildings using an estimated 47 billion gallons of water every day in the U.S, HVAC systems are typically responsible for 44 percent of that consumption. By harnessing open software frameworks, such as J2 Innovations’ FIN Framework, HVAC equipment manufacturers and facilities managers can deliver a holistic water optimization strategy and make drastic water savings. The paper explores how FIN Framework technology can help reduce water...

Most of you have no doubt been following the severe, extreme, and exceptional drought conditions across the West, Midwest, and Northeast. Yes, even the Northeast. Massachusetts has had nearly 100 wildfires in August and some areas of the Northeast are under extreme drought conditions. Most of the focus has been on the West and justifiably so. The water level of Lake Mead has dropped by 60 feet since 2020 to 1,040 feet. The lake is now in shortage condition two. Hoover Dam will cease generating electricity when the water level falls below 950 feet. That is in about three...