The Hilton Concord Hotel in San Francisco’s East Bay is wrapping up its multimillion-dollar refurbishment with an eye toward sustainability. “This renovation is allowing us to become a product of intuitive design and contemporary upgrades,” says general manager Jack Hlavac. “It also gives us the opportunity to have a positive impact on the environment by instituting sustainable practices into our operations that conserve natural resources and reduce waste, pollution, and the hotel’s carbon footprint.”

Among the hotel’s eco-friendly practices:

• Recycling: The property currently recycles a wide variety of materials including paper, glass, aluminum, metal, plastics, cardboard, paperboard, batteries, electronics, light bulbs, cooking oil/grease, toner/ink cartridges, newsprint, and magazines.
• Lower temperature dishwasher: The property is now able to use eco-friendly disinfectants while also consuming less water and natural gas.
• Pillow renovation: With the ability to sterilize, renovate, and reuse most of its pillows through the Pillow-Vac system, the property is able to reduce disposal of older pillows.
• Food waste reduction: The hotel’s F&B service uses the Eco-Safe Digester to convert food waste into liquid, reducing its contribution of food waste into landfills.
• Water conservation: TOTO Eco 1.28 gallon flush toilets in each guest bathroom which uses water more efficiently and minimizes noise. Additionally, the hotel uses well irrigation to hydrate its external landscaping to conserve the use of treated water as well as an Ozone Laundry System that uses less total water.
• Lighting efficiency: A significant portion of the hotel lighting, both in guestrooms and public spaces, has been converted from standard CFL lighting to ultra-efficient LED bulbs and high-efficiency fluorescent lighting.