Independent hotels and major chains have planted a crop of green hotels, with a few beginning to open, that stem from national guidelines constituting environmentally friendly construction. Starwood Capital, Starwood Hotels, InterContinental and Fairmont have green hotel properties under construction or are seeking ways to retrofit existing properties. To achieve true green classification, buildings must adhere to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards set forth by the U.S. Green Building Council. The first hotel in California to be built in line with the green building council’s standards opened last year: the 86-room Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco . The hotel, in which more than half its wood-based products were certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, achieved LEED certification and was approved by San Francisco as a green business.

News notes are courtesy of Southern Forests Network News Notes
www.southernsustainableforests.org