Bi-Weekly Newsletter
Eco-Travel Part 2: Green Hotels
Sometimes trends are mindless, or even downright annoying. (Beanie Babies, anyone?) And then there are the times when trends make so much sense, we wonder what took so long. One example: the hotel industry's move toward environmental sustainability in the form of green hotels.
Hotels use massive amounts of resources. Think about it: they are generally big buildings that use a large amount of construction materials just to build, they require a lot of energy to heat and cool, and they need water for everything from laundry to bathrooms to dishwashing. According to the State of California's Green Lodging Program, typical hotels use 218 gallons of water per day per occupied room and waste generation can be as high as 30 pounds per room per day. Then consider the energy use-- the hospitality industry spends $3.7 billion a year on energy. All of these areas provide opportunities for hotels to reduce their impact on the environment.
So what can a hotel do? What makes a hotel green? Any hotel can, and should, take steps towards reducing their environmental impact. Those now-ubiquitous cards that allow you to indicate whether you need fresh sheets or towels each day are a prime example. By reusing linens, hotels not only reduce their water and energy consumption, but they also increase the efficiency of their housekeeping services-- an added bonus!
LEED Rated Hotels: The Platinum Standard
The actions taken by individual hotels vary, to be sure. But fortunately now the LEED set of green building standards are being applied to certify hotels as "green". The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System is designed and managed by the non-profit US Green Building Council. This system is in use for all types of buildings, including hotels.
As the nationally recognized standard for the design, construction and operation of green buildings, LEED takes a "whole-building approach" to sustainability by setting benchmarks in five areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.
In practice, a building can be certified at one of four levels: certificate, silver, gold, or platinum. There are minimum requirements in each of the five categories, with the opportunity to accrue additional points to achieve higher ratings.
Currently, the highest rated hotel in the US is the LEED Gold-certified Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa (pictured above) in the wine country of Northern California (pictured above). Built of wood harvested from sustainable forests, the hotel also features carpets and tiles made from recycled materials, as well as solar panels for electricity generation. Compared to traditional hotels, the Gaia Napa Valley uses 26% less energy and 45% less water. The rooms even contain a copy of Al Gore's book, An Inconvenient Truth, (in addition to the traditional Bible, of course).
There are three other LEED certified hotels in the US: The Inn & Conference Center in College Park, Maryland, the Hilton Vancouver in Washington, and The Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco (pictured at left). For those adventurous souls among us, there is also a LEED certified hotel in Dambulla, Sri Lanka: the Kandalama Hotel.
The Green Hotel Association
Hotels need not be LEED certified to have adopted green practices that can make a real difference. Many hotels have joined the Green Hotels Association. These hotels have adopted practices or technologies that reduce their impact on the environment, often well before it was common in the industry. To find green hotels across the U.S., visit our Travel & Tourism Section.
For example, Sadie Cove Lodge in Alaska, built in 1972, uses its own hydroelectric system to generate all of its own power, making it completely "off the grid". Other hotels might use strategies that aren't so obvious, like the use of local, native plants that require little watering, or a reflective roof that dissipates and reflects heat, reducing the "heat island" effect common in urban areas. Other green practices include using ecologically-sound cleaning products, instituting recycling and composting programs, and buying local food. The possibilities for hotels to improve on business as usual are endless!
When researching individual hotels, if you're in doubt about a hotel's practices, please ASK! The more guests express a desire for a green hotel, the more the industry will listen. And once you're there, make sure to relax and enjoy your stay. That was the whole point of your trip, right?
So go ahead and book that green hotel! And tune in for our next issue, the third of this green travel series, in which we cover EcoTourism and the many eco-smart travel destinations and tours you can enjoy.
Cassie Walker, Low Impact Living, LLC
Do you have a topic you would like us to cover? Send us an email at info@lowimpactliving.com and we will try to incorporate it in our newsletters over the next few months.
Individual results of using green products and services listed herein may vary. Low Impact Living, Inc. takes no responsibility for individual results, nor for service providers or products listed on this website.
