Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants pursues brand-wide Green Seal Certification in 2010

May 25, 2010 – San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants announced its pursuit of an aggressive milestone for environmental responsibility. Kimpton, with 50 hotels in 22 major metropolitan cities, is in process to become the first lifestyle boutique hotel company in the U.S. to attain 100 percent Green Seal certification at the Silver level.


At present, 46 of 50 hotels have completed the rigorous application process for Green Seal certification, which includes an on-site audit. Half of those have already received certification. The rest are anticipated to be awarded certification within the next 90 days. The remaining four, including two opening this spring, will begin the certification process this year.

Green Seal certification is an important third-party validation of Kimpton’s more than 80 environmentally responsible operational practices under the company’s EarthCare program, and allows Kimpton to more effectively measure its nationwide reductions in waste, energy and water consumption. For example, at Kimpton’s Hotel Monaco in Chicago, which earned Green Seal certification in 2009 along with Kimpton’s Hotel Burnham and Hotel Allegro in the same city, tracking methods required for certification revealed that 116 tons, or 45 percent, of all of recyclables were diverted from landfill last year. This effort equates to the preservation of 1,977 trees, 477,042 kilowatts of electricity, 44,192 gallons of oil, 814,065 gallons of water and 349 yards of space diverted from landfill.

To qualify for GS-33 Green Seal certification, a hotel must demonstrate sustainable practices in the following areas:

■Waste minimization, reuse and recycling

■Energy efficiency, conservation and management

■Management of fresh water resources

■Waste water management

■Hazardous substances

■Environmentally sensitive purchasing

Certification requires an initial evaluation by Green Seal, including an extensive on-site audit of the property, and annual monitoring to ensure ongoing compliance. The GS-33 standard recognizes three levels of environmental achievement:

■Bronze: Entry level, meets essential environmental leadership elements

■Silver: Meets a more comprehensive level of required leadership operations

■Gold: Meets additional criteria demonstrating hotel is at the forefront of environmental leadership

“We congratulate the Kimpton hotels on committing to such an ambitious goal,” said Dr. Arthur Weissman, President & CEO of Green Seal. “As their certified properties in Chicago alone have already prevented an estimated 1,500 tons of greenhouse gasses, Kimpton is helping to create a more sustainable world.”

Since it was first published in 1999, the Green Seal Environmental Standard for Lodging Properties, GS-33, has represented leadership in the industry. The standard focuses on waste minimization, energy conservation and management, management of fresh water resources, waste water management, pollution prevention, and organizational commitment such as environmentally sensitive purchasing. The standard can serve as a tool to help operations begin to take action to improve their operation and is available for Green Seal certification.

Kimpton’s innovative EarthCare initiatives date back to the company’s inception in 1981 and include several industry firsts such as in-room recycling bins and the use of non-toxic cleaners brand-wide. Through a new brand-wide Wines That CareTM program led by master sommelier Emily Wines, guests enjoy many featured environmentally preferable wines at the hosted evening wine hour at all Kimpton hotels. Diners at Kimpton Restaurants have access to increased sustainably produced wine selections on menus, can take advantage of in-house purified water through a national partnership with Natura® and enjoy sustainable seafood dishes in accordance with Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program. Kimpton is a partner of The Nature Conservancy to support its “Plant a Billion Trees” campaign.