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Green Hotels and Restaurants
Seminar Meeting Summary
February 2001

Barry Dimson - President,
Barry H. Dimson, Inc.
Mr. Dimson described the Sheraton Rittenhouse Hotel in Philadelphia, a new hotel that features many environmentally-friendly systems. Mr. Dimson helped to design the hotel and is part owner. He showed a six-minute video that focused on many features of the building, particularly its filtered air system. The hotel also has several other environmental features:

• Filtered air system, which is independent of the hotel's heating and cooling system, provides filtered fresh air that is free of bacteria, mold and pollen. The air in each room is exchanged every half-hour.
• The wallpaper and carpet are designed to minimize air quality impacts and to facilitate future removal and recycling.
• Recycled granite and sustainably harvested materials are also used in the lobby an throughout the building.
• Each room has a four section waste disposal pail to facilitate recycling.
• The laundry system uses a cold water ozonization process that does not require chemicals and conserves energy and water.
• Large live bamboo plants in lobby have a high rate of oxygen off-gassing.

There has not been a "green hotel" standard to follow, but the main areas of focus should be

• Energy Efficiency
• Water Conservation
• Resources/Materials
• Indoor Air Quality
• Sustainable Products

Mr. Dimson explained what new hotels typically cost to develop. In the New York area, 20 percent of the cost is for land acquisition, 20 percent for loan interest, five percent for building design, and the remaining 55 percent for construction. Of that 55 percent, one-half (27.5%) goes toward the superstructure (steel, concrete) and the other half pays for materials and building systems. It will generally cost ten percent more to build green, which is ten percent of the 27.5 percent spent on building systems and materials, or 2.75 percent of the overall project cost. Building a green project actually saved the Sheraton Rittenhouse money because all the positive publicity it received for being a green hotel (USA Today and other sources) allowed the hotel reach break-even after one year instead of the typical three years. The improvement translated into large cost savings on loan interest payments. Barry H. Dimson, Inc., specializes in environmental consulting for buildings.

Nora Pouillon - Chef and Owner of Restaurant Nora and Asia Nora
In 1999, Restaurant Nora became America's first certified organic restaurant. Ms. Pouillon reviewed the benefits of using organic ingredients and the environmental features that are incorporated into her restaurants.

• A water filtering system is used for all applications. The filtered water is softer, so it requires less detergent for washing, and it reduces mineral build-up in equipment.
• A special organic detergent is used in the dishwasher.
• Own laundry system for linens uses biodegradable detergent.
• Uses locally grown food.
• Napkins are non-chlorine, non-bleached paper.
• Staff takes the food waste and composts it at several private residences.
• A recycling company collects the glass, metal, paper, and plastic for recycling.
• Environmentally friendly pest control services.
• Full spectrum fluorescent light bulbs.
• Recycled content carpet.
• Uniforms made from environmentally friendly hemp.
• Low VOC paints.
• Dried organic flowers instead of chemically treated live flowers.

Mark Petruzzi - Director of Certification, Green Seal
Mr. Petruzzi explained that Green Seal is an independent non-profit company that certifies environmental claims for products. Green Seal has most recently expanded into the area of certifying green hotels. The first hotel certified is likely to be the Sheraton Rittenhouse in Philadelphia. The state of Pennsylvania is working with Green Seal of certify multiple hotels in the near future. Many hotels are not that far away from achieving a Green Seal rating based on energy efficiency and other measures. Green Seal has also produced Greening Your Property, a comprehensive environmental purchasing guide for hotels published by the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Motel Association.

Much has been happening recently on the "demand side" for green hotels and conferencing centers. Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES) is a non-profit coalition that works in partnership with companies toward the common goal of corporate environmental responsibility worldwide. Corporate partners include Coca-Cola, General Motors, and American Airlines. CERES partners have recently initiated a program to give preference to green hotels when booking conferences. Additionally, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has launched an effort to promote sustainable travel practices both to government employees and to other meeting planners. Meeting Professionals International has also developed a guide to aid environmental meeting planning. The demand for green meeting space is likely to increase in the near future.

John Huppman - Director of Food and Beverage, Westfields Marriott International Conference Center
Mr. Huppman discussed the challenges and rewards of establishing a successful hotel recycling program. Westfields began the program about 10 years ago in response to Fairfax County recycling requirements for large businesses. It has expanded to include office paper, newspaper, corrugated cardboard, steel, aluminum, and plastic. The hotel developed a system to reuse shipping pallets to eliminate wood waste. Guests also have optional sheet and towel washing service. The program is profiled in the Recycling Guidebook for the Hospitality Industry.

A major challenge to the program has been glass recycling. Westfields had been recycling glass containers until recently, when the recycling company said that breakage of the mixed colored glass was too high to allow effective recycling. This change put 75-80 tons per year back into the waste stream. The hotel is hoping to find a solution that will allow it to recycle the glass again. Another challenge has been finding space to collect and store the material.

Recycling as compared to disposal of all solid waste has been a break-even situation financially. The hotel does not currently promote its program to guests.

Michele Russo - Deputy Director, National Pollution Prevention Roundtable
Ms. Russo reviewed a recent conference held in Philadelphia on greening the hospitality industry. Several state governments in the mid-Atlantic are beginning to launch programs to encourage green businesses. Pennsylvania has longest running program and Virginia has just begun an environmental lodging promotion. Delaware is also involved.

Fran McPoland - Senior VP & Chief Env. Strategist, GreenOrder.Com, Inc.
Ms. McPoland, the former Federal Environmental Executive, explained how her new company GreenOrder facilitates the procurement of environmental products. The site is set up for business-to-business transactions. Users can browse listing in different categories or use a buying service to request a quote for certain products. GreenOrder also offers customers the chance to co-brand a section of the so that the customer's employees can go through a customized business portal that controls what can be purchased.