The following article appeared in the May 8, 2007 edition of The Plain Dealer, Metro section. It was written by Sarah Hollander.

Hotels look to attract friends of the planet

Hotels across the country ask their guests to help save the planet by using sheets and towels for another day.

A group of Cleveland hoteliers wants to take environmental friendliness to the next level. They will begin an eight-month sustainability program next month to learn about everything from energy audits and recycling to water conservation and local food procurement.

Eventually, the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Cleveland hopes it can market the city's lodging industry as green.

It's still early enough in the movement to attract attention as a leader, said Kelly Brewer, the bureau's vice president of sales.

"It's just one more competitive advantage you can offer, and it's the responsible thing to do," he said.

The idea surfaced about three years ago when the bureau was wooing the American Solar Energy Society. The society plans to hold its 2007 national conference here in July.

In the meantime, Cleveland became a finalist for the 2008 Republican National Convention.

A Boston group that greened the 2004 Democratic convention (Ed. note: they also greened the 2004 Republican convention) felt Cleveland could bolster its pitch by adding a plan for saving energy and water, cutting waste and offering public transportation.

Beachwood native Dan Ruben, executive director of the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Conventions, and now director of Boston Green Tourism, pitched the idea to EcoCity Cleveland.

Cleveland lost the Republican convention to Minneapolis-St. Paul, but the interest in greening the area's hospitality industry continued.

"It's more than just talk," said Marc Lefkowitz of EcoCity.

Cleveland-based Entrepreneurs for Sustainability will run the program, the fourth of its kind in the area and the first tailored to a particular industry. About seven downtown hotels will participate, with the goal of adding more later.

The hotel representatives will meet two or three hours once a month for eight months, E4S President Holly Harlan said. They will learn the fundamentals of sustainability: waste reduction, energy efficiency, green procurement, renewable energy and green building. And they will learn from each other.

At the end of the program, each hotel will create an action plan. For example, the hotels could decide to make a group purchase of flourescent lights, use sun to heat water instead of gas (Ed. note: aka Solar Thermal), create a cooperative recycling effort or laundry depot, or team with local farmers to pre-order crops for restaurant and room service meals, Harlan said.

The hotels may also decide to pursue green certification. National programs include Energy Star, Green Seal and LEED.

If enough Cleveland hotels earn green credibility, the city could lure more groups, said Steven Stewart, general manager of the Hyatt Regency at the Arcade in Cleveland. "There's a large amount of business out there."

The Hyatt chain already directs its hotels to find ways to reduce water use and cut energy and heating costs, Stewart said. He's interested in learning about additional opportunities through the local program.

Convention planners are asking more and more about environmental efforts, Brewer said. But business travelers and tourists care as well, he said.

According to a recent poll by the travel Web site Orbitz, more than two-thirds of Americans surveyed cared about the eco-friendliness of a destination.

"Travelers are reassessing how they travel, where they stay and the impact they leave behind when on vacation," the survey said.

Portland—with slogans like "We're rolling out the green carpet" and "Ahhh, Portland. Green. Clean. Friendly. Vibrant."—is known as a leader in green travel. The city's expansion of its convention center included several energy-saving devices and a rain garden that collects and filters storm water runoff from the building's roof. 

Closer to home, Pittsburgh opened the country's first certified green convention center in 2003. And a hotel now under construction—the Fairmount Pittsburgh—plans to seek LEED certification.

In Cleveland, if the city builds a new convention center, the Planning Commission passed a resolution in 2003 encouraging builders to strive for green credentials.

The hotel initiative is the latest effort to change the area's rust belt image and will add to investments in wind power, solar panels at Jacobs Field and other renewable energy projects.