DAHLONEGA, GA.—Breakthrough technology designed to completely eliminate water bourne bacteria legionella, tested by a research chemist at the Centre Des Technologies De L’Eau (CTE) in Montreal, is a proven strategy to save lives and possibly prevent future disease outbreaks. In July 2015, a deadly outbreak of Legionella in New York City claimed 12 lives. Legionella outbreaks have also been recently reported in Illinois, Detroit, Orlando, San Francisco, Maryland, Georgia, Spain, England and Australia. The lifesaving technology manufactured by Ozomax, Inc., Canada was tested by a research chemist at the CTE in accordance with EPA general standards. Dr. Abdelaziz Gherrou Ph.D.,...

MANCHESTER, N.H.—Xeros, the innovator of an ultra-low water laundry system, announced that it has agreed with Jamsan Hotel Management (JHM) Group that its award-winning polymer bead cleaning laundry system is to be installed in each of its hotels. The program will see the replacement of conventional washers in more than 50 properties with Xeros laundry systems which reduce water and energy costs without sacrificing the quality of service to hotel customers. Jamsan Hotel Management is a national hospitality management company based in Lexington, Mass., with 50 hotels, and totaling over 3,500 rooms across New England. “After our initial installation of a...

TETIAROA, FRENCH POLYNESIA—The Brando announced its LEED Platinum certification. The luxury property earned the prestigious designation based on its commitment to conservation and sustainability efforts in the development and overall operation of the pristine island resort. This certification is the culmination of more than six years of work carried out by the resort’s owners, designers and architects, and establishes The Brando as the first project to earn LEED certification in French Polynesia. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that...

DES PLAINES, ILL.—Chicago Faucets announces the release of a new white paper, “Cheap Water No More.” The white paper discusses the continually escalating cost of water businesses will experience due to replacement of the country’s aging water and sewer systems, specifically the thousands of miles of pipes and the tens of thousands of treatment plants, storage tanks and water distribution systems in need of repair or replacement, according to a Black and Veatch report. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates the total national cost of updating these systems to be around $384 billion over the next 20 years. The white...

SAN FRANCISCO—Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC), the North American green roof and wall industry association, is congratulating San Francisco on its policy leadership. Supervisor Scott Wiener introduced legislation on September 6, which was unanimously approved by the San Francisco Planning Commission last week, that builds on their existing solar roof mandate. This makes San Francisco the first city in the United States to require green roofs and/or solar panels on new construction projects. “Rooftops are one of the last untapped environmental resources in our growing city, and we need to be strategic about how we activate these spaces,”...

PLAYA GUIONES, COSTA RICA—In a country so well known for its ecotourism and renewable energy leadership positions, it should come as no surprise that one of its hotels has earned the rare LEED Platinum certification. That is what happened this summer at the Olas Verdes Hotel in Playa Guiones, Costa Rica. Luis Pardo, General Manager of the boutique hotel with five casitas, said the property is the first surf hotel in the world and the first hotel in Costa Rica to reach the LEED Platinum level. The Olas Verdes Hotel opened last December, Pardo says. “The owners wanted to have...

NATIONAL REPORT—A field study of rack and flight conveyor dishwashers conducted by Pacific Gas and Electric Company Food Service Technology Center (FSTC) documents the energy and water savings and economic benefits of replacing an old inefficient dishwasher with a new efficient or best-in-class dishwasher. The study, entitled “Conveyor Dishwasher Performance Field Evaluation Report,” highlights how dishwashers become less efficient over time and how many dishwashers fail to operate to their design specifications. Summary data from the nine dishwashers monitored during the study were added to nine other dishwashers previously monitored by FSTC in the last five years. One of...

LONDON—ITP (International Tourism Partnership) announced a major step forward in the hotel industry’s stewardship of water, with the launch of the Hotel Water Measurement Initiative (HWMI). Eighteen global hotel groups including Accor, Carlson Rezidor, Diamond Resorts, Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, Hilton Worldwide, the Hongkong & Shanghai Hotels, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels Group, Las Vegas Sands Corp., Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Marriott International, MGM Hotels & Resorts, NH Hotel Group, Soneva, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Taj Hotels, Resorts & Palaces, Whitbread, and Wyndham Worldwide Resorts have worked together to create the industry’s first jointly developed and consistent water...

NATIONAL REPORT—Electronic devices have changed the way that people work and live, often simplifying complex tasks. The iPhone is said to have combined more than 15 separate devices that Radio Shack offered, and reduced the cost of ownership while decreasing complexity. The water market offers a large set of opportunities to improve conservation using new technologies. Consider the role that chemicals historically have played for controlling water quality and the millions of gallons of hazardous chemicals that are used each day. Electronic devices are able to reduce water and chemical use by over 50 percent. Cooling towers in the United...

WOODRIDGE, ILL.—Gerber, an industry leader in high performing plumbing fixtures, is on a mission to dispel the myth that water efficient toilets cannot perform well. The brand’s recent demonstration video features its leading Avalanche toilet (Model # WS-21-818), which operates at 1.28 gallons per minute/4.8 liters per minute. In the video, the WaterSense certified Avalanche comfortably flushes 4,600 grams of water balloons (4 to 5 times more than what is required to earn the prestigious certification).So what gives the Avalanche product line so much flushing power?“Obviously there’s a science that goes into a toilet configuration, especially when you only...