Green lodges
Encyclopedia
Green lodges are lodges, hotel
s, motel
s, inn
s and resort
s which meet the standards for environmental responsibility. In the United States
, California
, Delaware
, Florida
, Georgia
, Maine
, Massachusetts
, Michigan
, New Hampshire
, North Carolina
, Pennsylvania
, Rhode Island
, South Carolina
, Vermont
and Virginia
have implemented certification programs to identify facilities which have implemented continuing programs to conserve natural resource
s, reduce waste
and minimizing pollution
. Green Lodge is an on-line guide to U.S. green hotels and details and ranks the hotels in each of the state's green programs. In addition, Green Lodge includes hotels participating in the Energy Star
program or have won sustainability
awards in other states.
The Florida Green Lodging Program is a voluntary initiative of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection
(DEP) that designates and recognizes lodging facilities that make a commitment to conserve and protect Florida’s natural resources. The program’s environmental guidelines allow the hospitality industry
to evaluate its operations, set goals and take specific actions to continuously improve environmental performance.
The Florida Green Lodging Program is administered primarily online. To become designated, facilities must conduct a thorough property assessment and implement a specified number of environmental practices in six areas of sustainable operations:
The Florida Green Lodging designation is valid for three years from date of issuance. To maintain designation, properties are required to submit environmental performance data (water
, waste, energy
) annually. Properties must also implement at least two new environmental practices from any of the six areas of sustainable operations.
The Florida Green Lodging Program benefits not only the environment
but also helps designated properties save money and increase occupancy rates. By reducing water and energy use
and reducing waste generation operating costs go down. Business is generated for state meeting
s and conferences through HB 7135 which gives preference to designated Florida Green Lodging properties. Designated properties also receive marketing
and technical assistance benefits through the Florida Green Lodging Web site, where each designated property is featured and 24/7 Web access is available to Best Management Practices and Technical Assistance.
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
s, motel
Motel
A motor hotel, or motel for short, is a hotel designed for motorists, and usually has a parking area for motor vehicles...
s, inn
INN
InterNetNews is a Usenet news server package, originally released by Rich Salz in 1991, and presented at the Summer 1992 USENIX conference in San Antonio, Texas...
s and resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
s which meet the standards for environmental responsibility. In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
and Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
have implemented certification programs to identify facilities which have implemented continuing programs to conserve natural resource
Natural resource
Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by mankind, in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts of biodiversity and geodiversity existent in various ecosystems....
s, reduce waste
Waste
Waste is unwanted or useless materials. In biology, waste is any of the many unwanted substances or toxins that are expelled from living organisms, metabolic waste; such as urea, sweat or feces. Litter is waste which has been disposed of improperly...
and minimizing pollution
Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light...
. Green Lodge is an on-line guide to U.S. green hotels and details and ranks the hotels in each of the state's green programs. In addition, Green Lodge includes hotels participating in the Energy Star
Energy Star
Energy Star is an international standard for energy efficient consumer products originated in the United States of America. It was first created as a United States government program during the early 1990s, but Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Taiwan and the European Union have also adopted...
program or have won sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
awards in other states.
Florida
The Florida Green Lodging Program is a voluntary initiative of the Florida Department of Environmental ProtectionFlorida Department of Environmental Protection
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection is the Florida government agency charged with environmental protection.-History:...
(DEP) that designates and recognizes lodging facilities that make a commitment to conserve and protect Florida’s natural resources. The program’s environmental guidelines allow the hospitality industry
Hospitality industry
The hospitality industry consists of broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, restaurants, event planning, theme parks, transportation, cruise line, and additional fields within the tourism industry. The hospitality industry is a several billion dollar industry...
to evaluate its operations, set goals and take specific actions to continuously improve environmental performance.
The Florida Green Lodging Program is administered primarily online. To become designated, facilities must conduct a thorough property assessment and implement a specified number of environmental practices in six areas of sustainable operations:
- Communication and Education (Customers, Employees, Public)
- Waste Reduction, Reuse and Recycling
- Water Conservation
- Energy Efficiency
- Indoor Air Quality
- Transportation
The Florida Green Lodging designation is valid for three years from date of issuance. To maintain designation, properties are required to submit environmental performance data (water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
, waste, energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
) annually. Properties must also implement at least two new environmental practices from any of the six areas of sustainable operations.
The Florida Green Lodging Program benefits not only the environment
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
but also helps designated properties save money and increase occupancy rates. By reducing water and energy use
Energy use
Energy use or similar terms are discussed in the following articles:* Efficient energy use* World energy resources and consumption* energy use intensity...
and reducing waste generation operating costs go down. Business is generated for state meeting
Meeting
In a meeting, two or more people come together to discuss one or more topics, often in a formal setting.- Definitions :An act or process of coming together as an assembly for a common purpose....
s and conferences through HB 7135 which gives preference to designated Florida Green Lodging properties. Designated properties also receive marketing
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
and technical assistance benefits through the Florida Green Lodging Web site, where each designated property is featured and 24/7 Web access is available to Best Management Practices and Technical Assistance.