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Virginia Department of Environmental Quality

Virginia Green
Hotels & Lodging Facilities

Virginia Green
Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria
Alexandria, VA

Virginia Green is the Commonwealth of Virginia’s campaign to promote environmentally-friendly practices in all aspects of Virginia’s tourism industry. Virginia Green has established "core activities" specific to each sector of tourism, and these practices are considered the required minimum for participation in the program. However, Virginia Green encourages its participants to reduce their environmental impacts in all aspects of their operations, and this profile provides a full list of all their “green” activities. These are the activities that guests / customers can expect to find when they visit this facility.

Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria

The Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria is a full service upper scale all-suites hotel located in the charming and quaint Old Town Alexandria Neighborhood. We have easy access to Washington DC and the surrounding metropolitan areas via Reagan National Airport, underground subway and nearby highways.

The Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria is committed to reducing our carbon foot print and practices many energy saving techniques. As a Starwood property we are committed to conservation and doing our part to preserve the environment we all share.

The Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria continues to search for new ways to conserve energy and utilize our resources. Many of the products and services we use follow green practices and we seek out these relationships that benefit the hotel and the environment.

Virginia Green Activities

This facility pledges that they:
Offer optional linen service
- Have signage in each guest room explaining the linen reuse procedures 
- Change linens only upon request 
- Train housekeeping staff on our process for optional linen service  
- Track optional linen participation rate 
- Purchase water- and energy-efficient washers and dryers 
- Use non-phosphate, non-toxic and biodegradable laundry detergents 
- Minimize the use of bleach and chlorinated chemicals 
- Use a service that has environmentally-preferable wet cleaning for dry-clean only items 

Recycle
- Have in place clearly marked recycling bins or provide convenient drop-off locations for guests to recycle: 
- Glass Bottles 
- Plastic Bottles 
- Aluminum cans 
- Steel cans 
- Newspaper 
- Office paper
Other items recycled by the facility: 
- Printer/ copy machine toner cartridges 
- Cardboard 
- Batteries 
- Electronics equipment such as computers, etc. 

Reduce solid waste
- Track overall solid waste costs 
- Recycle fryer grease 
- Donate excess food from events 
- Have an effective food inventory control system to minimize waste 
- Use disposable foodservice items that are made from renewable materials (not petroleum-based) 
- Use disposable foodservice items that are made from recycled content 
- Use cloth napkins 
- Provide condiments, cream and sugar, etc. in bulk 
- Use water pitchers to minimize the use of single-use bottles 
- Use bulk soap dispensers in public restrooms 
- Purchase recycled-content paper-towels and toilet paper 
- Remove facility and staff names from junk mail lists when possible 
- Reuse scrap paper for notes 
- Use refillable pens and toner cartridges 
- Make double-sided photocopies and avoid making extra photocopies 
- Use electronic correspondence and forms when possible 
- Install carpet with sustainable or recycled content and low-VOC adhesives 
- Use latex, low or no-VOC paints 
- Properly recycle and/or dispose of thinners and solvents 
- Perform preventative maintenance on all appliances, HVAC systems, plumbing, and vehicles 
- Minimize use of pesticides and herbicides in landscaping 

Use water efficiently
- Track overall water usage and wastewater costs 
- Perform preventative maintenance to stop drips and leaks 
- Use water-flow metering to discover leaks and areas of high use 
- Have installed low flow faucets and showerheads (use less than 2.5 gallons per minute) 
- Have installed low flow toilets (use 1.6 gallons per flush or less) 
- Have installed automatic faucets or toilets in public restrooms 
- Use microfiber technology mops 
- Have landscaping that utilizes native species 
- Have minimized our lawn area 
- Have minimized impervious areas (paving, concrete, etc.) 

Conserve energy
- Track overall energy bills 
- Have had an energy audit to identify efficiency opportunities within the past 12 months 
- Use ENERGY STARs Benchmarking Tools for the Hospitality Industry 
- Have individual thermostats for each room; ensure they are correctly adjusted 
- Regularly perform preventative maintenance on HVAC system 
- Have installed a high efficiency HVAC system 
- Keep office doors and windows closed if HVAC system is on 
- Use natural lighting (i.e., open draperies and raise shades whenever adequate light from windows is available) 
- Have adopted a policy/practice to turn off lights in unoccupied rooms 
- Have installed high efficiency fluorescent ballasts and lamps (T-5 and T-8) 
- Have installed compact fluorescent light bulbs in all rooms and canned lighting 
- Have adopted a policy/practice to minimize the use of lighting during night cleaning 
- Have adopted a policy/practice to turn off fans, computers, monitors and other devices in unoccupied rooms at the end of the workday or when otherwise not being used 

Offer a green events package
- Include the availability of "green meetings/conferences" in marketing packages (see the factsheet on Environmentally-Responsible Conferences & Events) 

Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria    Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria

For more information on Sheraton Suites Old Town Alexandria, see www.sheratonsuitesalexandria.com or contact Steve Wieder at swieder@sheratonalexandria.com or 703-836-4700.

For more information on the Virginia Green program, see www.deq.state.va.us/Programs/PollutionPrevention/VirginiaGreen.aspx.

Virginia GreenVirginia Green is a partnership supported by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, the Virginia Hospitality & Tourism Association, and the Virginia Tourism Corporation.

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