Washington DC is Going Green - Environmentally Sustainable Hotels

“Going Green” is more than just a fad… it is essential to our success as a hotel, our role in corporate responsibility, and our collective well-being as a planet.

We believe that environmental sustainability means good business! That’s why WashDCHotels is proud to be a leader in “greening” the hospitality industry in the DC Metro area and beyond. We have been acknowledged and awarded with some of the state’s top environmental recognitions, including the Department of Environmental Quality and Virginia Green Lodging.

While utilizing sustainable practices in all aspects of our operations, our environmental focus is on the areas of Recycling and Conservation (through waste and consumption reduction).  Below are a few examples of everyday practices that showcase our commitment to sustainability… across all departments of our hotel.

Recycling

• We provide recycling receptacles in all guestrooms and public spaces for guests to dispose of paper, plastic, aluminum, and glass
• Our kitchen and pantry are equipped with a grease trap to collect and dispose of grease-waste on a regular basis
• Our meetings and catering team utilizes Bic biodegradable pens for use in meetings and events
• We ensure that all light bulbs, batteries, and electronic equipment are recycled properly
• We provide recycling bins in all “back-of-house” areas for all team members to recycle appropriate materials
• Our administrative team recycles toner and ink cartridges

Conservation – Consumption Reduction

• Housekeeping team ensures that all lights and televisions are turned off in all guestrooms
• Our kitchen team ensures that our dish washing machine is clean and that the wash, rinse, and sanitize arms are free from lime buildup
• We ask all meeting/banquet clients if we can use pitchers of filtered water instead of bottled water
• We have installed low-flow water restrictive devices for our faucets, toilets, urinals, and shower heads
• During periods of low occupancy, we have a coordinated plan to “shut down” certain floors or wings, ensuring that heating/cooling units and electrical appliances are turned off

Conservation – Waste Reduction

• We have implemented a linen and towel re-use program
• Our food and beverage team has eliminated the use of all Styrofoam and plastic cups and containers
• Our team encourages guests and clients to use double-sided copying at a reduced two-page cost
• Our administrative team has stopped printing daily reports, equaling an annual savings of paper equivalent to 20 miles
• We encourage guests/clients to send proposals, marketing materials, and contracts electronically

Green Meetings Package
In addition to all our standard operational practices aimed at sustainability, we also offer one of the industry’s best and most comprehensive “Green Meetings” packages.

Our Green Meetings Package is uniquely designed to ensure your guests and attendees are satisfied and that all the goals and objectives of your meeting or event are met, while maintaining a focus on environmental sustainability. 

Our Green Meetings Package includes the following features:

• Function area space lights and air conditioning consumption will be used as sparingly as possible
• Any printed literature will have expanded margins for greater print area & be printed on both sides of the paper
• Note paper will be provided in bulk at the back of the room for those that need it, not at each place setting
• Recycling containers will be located in and around the function space
• Filtered water served in pitchers will be available; bottled water will not be served
• All items will be served in bulk, limiting the amount of packaging necessary
• White boards will be utilized instead of paper flip charts when possible
• No Styrofoam products will be used
• Any pre/post-convention meetings that are hosted will be paperless (all materials will be electronic)
• Locally-grown food products will be served whenever possible

The "Sprit to Preserve" Award is a brand new award program started by Marriott International to recognize franchisees that are committed to preserving our planet for future generations. WashDC Hotels, owner and operator of 3 Marriott hotels in the DC Metro Area, was the first company to be given the honor of winning the "Spirit to Preserve" Award.

WashDCHotels was awarded this prestigious award because of our enthusiastic participation in our “Our Big Green” initiative which emphasizes three green principles: Conserve, Recycle, and Act Now.

Conserve!
We believe that it is imperative to conserve the resources we have by using them more efficiently and choosing products that reduce waste.

Recycle!
We understand that waste is unavoidable so we make concerted efforts to recycle as much as possible and use products that are environmentally friendly like biodegradable pens.

Act Now!
We feel it is important not only for our own employees to think green but to be leaders in the community and teach others what they can do to help the environment. “Our Big Green” mascot OBG helps by going to local schools and organizations to promote environmental awareness as well as energizing our own employees to act now and “Be Green.”