Image credit: Artur Bergman at Wikimedia Commons.

Some of the features of the remodel include:

• Preserving existing teak trim, mirrors, stone vanities and tubs.
• Using Forest Stewardship Council certified wood that adheres to all the practices of the Smartwood Rainforest Alliance.
• 40% recycled content tile on the walls and floors.
• Use of LED lighting custom designed by Eleek Lighting and Design.
• Shower heads that reduce water usage by 10 to 20 percent.
• Toilets that will reduce water usage by 50 percent.
• Approximately 95%, by volume, of the debris from the bathroom demolition was donated to Portland’s ReBuilding Center, the largest non-profit building materials resource in North America.

The Heathman is not new to sustainability and conservation.  It was one of Portland’s first hotels to receive incentives from the Energy Trust of Oregon for energy efficiency upgrades.  It also participates in Pacific Power’s Blue Sky program, purchasing 30 percent of its electricity from Blue Sky renewable sources.  Chris Erickson, the Heathman’s general manager, said, “We are thrilled to team with AMAA (Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects), a company that shares our sustainable values and commitment to community.  They’ve helped to take our existing sustainability efforts to the next level.”

The Heathman’s guests are invited to see, and experience, how luxury and sustainability can coexist.

VisitBritain, Britain’s National Tourist Board has launched a new program to help accommodation providers and visitor attractions in England take the first steps toward becoming sustainable businesses.

The Green Start project aims to encourage a “rapid, widespread and significant increase in the adoption of sustainable tourism principles” by offering a validated sustainable accreditation scheme.

Jason Freezer, VisitBritain’s sustainable tourism project manager, said: “VisitBritain is committed to encouraging sustainable businesses. However, nearly two-thirds tell us they need more guidance on developing their business in that way.”

Read more of this story »

The good news is that more and more hotel chains are taking up the challenge of incorporating the values of sustainability into their operations. One example is the Hotel Intercontinental in Chicago, which last week announced plans to begin supporting renewable energy in a big way.

The agreement between Intercontinental Chicago Hotel and electricity supplier Constellation NewEnergy is a good thing for the environment, but it takes a little bit of explanation to understand why. That’s because the hotel won’t actually be using wind, solar, or hydroelectric power in its golden domed building on Michigan Avenue. Instead, it will support the operation of power plants that create green energy by purchasing renewable energy certificates (RECs) equal to 50% of its total electricity use. Not every business is able to change its operations to run on green electricity, but any company can buy RECs. For every certificate purchased, a unit of renewable energy is produced and fed into the power grid. The more renewable energy placed onto the grid, the less nonrenewable energy (such as coal, nuclear, oil, and gas) is required to fill the country’s energy needs.

Read more of this story »

So, for those of us alike who prefer socializing, enjoying the company of others, and connecting with like-minded professionals nationwide, there is a creative and more sustainable hotel alternative for you called Airbed & Breakfast. Two independent designers in San Francisco recently had the idea to rent out extra space in their SOMA loft to provide an opportunity for conference attendees to connect with others off the premise. This October 17-20, a rather large conference is taking place in the bay area called the IDSA World Design Congress. The last time this conference was in the US was 20-something years ago. As a result, designers of all ages from all over the country will be traveling to the city to be a part of this important design weekend. With the theme of the conference being "Connecting," this opportunity is perfectly appropriate.

What these two gentleman realized was that they have a wealth of extra space, extra desks, plenty of kitchen space to cook everyone breakfast, and somehow a stockpile of airbeds. When you put these extra resources together, it makes for a great environment that many travelers could advantage of. This is "something new and different: classier than couchsurfing, and more personable than craigslist — it is an AirBed & Breakfast."

In addition to building a website to advertise the brilliance of this new way to connect people at the conference, the two founders, Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky, both in their mid to late twenties, wanted to provide an opportunity for others to list their place in order to create a new network of socialization and entrepreneurship at conferences nationwide. On the site is a link tovacancies where prospective residents can browse through and choose their weekend home and office based on location, attributes, ambiance, and other details. The moment that Joe and Brian launched the site (just this past week), the word spread quickly. There are now four different spaces offered on the vacancies link, and one is already sold out.

The brilliance in this idea is not only attractive because it builds relationships and creates a more comfortable living alternative to hotels, but it is far more sustainable. Even the acclaimed "green hotels" are required to use far more resources to maintain a whole room for one individual than an existing home with an added bed. If you think about it, if one is already making coffee in the morning, why not make it for 10?

Question: What are some ways that hotels who produce large volumes of food sraps minimize wastes? Currently all food scraps are thrown into a large commercial compactor bin. Any ideas how this can be overcome and a more eco-efficient strategy adopted?

Answer: My local co-op recently implemented one solution for large amounts of food waste. It's called the Earth Tub, a commercial duty composter made for businesses like hotels and restaurants that produce large amounts of food scraps. It's a self-contained system that quickly composts food scraps, is easy to stir, and can be used year-round.

The Earth Tub is made by Green Mountain Technologies, specialists in composting technologies that describe their product as a perfect sustainable solution for businesses such as hotels:

The Earth Tub is a small scale, in-vessel composting system for recycling organic waste materials at the site where they are generated. Complete with a bio-filter for odor processing and control, this system provides a neighborhood friendly efficient composting technology. The Earth Tub has been developed specifically to meet the composting needs of universities/schools, restaurants/cafeterias, commercial food processors, hospitals, multi-unit residential dwellings, camps and other institutional organic waste generators.

The Earth Tub can process up to 500 pounds of waste a day, and it compacts as it composts. It is also a modular design so it's easy to expand. It is designed for food scraps, yard waste, and needs a bit of dry material like sawdust or shredded paper to control moisture levels. It sounds like a great solution for a large operation like a hotel, and then you could use the compost it creates in your landscaping.

In addition to a large composter, there are many practices that can be implemented to help reduce waste and become more eco-friendly in your operations. One idea is to adjust the portion sizes at restaurants so that less waste is produced. At most restaurants, the portion sizes are much too big for one person to finish in a meal (not that this keeps people from trying). Adjusting portion sizes can be a trial and error process until you notice that less food is thrown away.

Another option would be to change the types of meals you offer so there are more sustainable options. For instance, offering more vegan and vegetarian meals would not only make healthier food available to your customers, but plant-based foods are less wasteful to produce and thus more sustainable. This will also make more fodder for the Earth Tub, since the majority of food waste given to it should ideally be non-meat and non-dairy.

Other things you can do to become a more sustainable business are to source local and organic ingredients whenever possible. You could go as local as possible by growing some of your own ingredients! Herbs and spices are easy to grow in windowboxes, or on a larger scale, a rooftop garden could provide not only fresh ingredients, but insulation and increased energy efficiency. There are many things a hotel or other large business can do to become a more sustainable operation, from using natural laundry detergents and non-toxic cleaning materials to using an Earth Tub.

By adjusting your hotel operations and looking into composting options like the earth tub, I'm sure you can become a greener business. Don't forget to advertise all you're doing to be sustainable, it may just help attract new customers!