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Virginia Department of Environmental Quality

Virginia Green
Hotels & Lodging Facilities

Virginia Green
The Mason Inn Conference Center and Hotel
Fairfax, 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.

The Mason Inn Conference Center and Hotel

The Mason Inn Conference Center & Hotel is a 148-room IACC certified conference center and hotel that is LEED-certified GOLD by the U.S. Green Buildings Council.

Maintaining the earth's natural resources and being energy efficient are part of The Mason Inn's core mission of being environmentally responsible. The Conference Center and Hotel want to maintain strong environmental standards as a corporate citizen located in Virginia and help educate guests and conference attendees about the importance of being Virginia Green.

The Mason Inn purchases a significant amount of products and supplies from local vendors, always strives to minimize waste and never wants to waste energy.

For more 'green' specific information : www.themasoninnva.com

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  
- 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 an ozone laundry system that greatly minimizes the need for detergents and saves water 
- Use a service that has environmentally-preferable wet cleaning for dry-clean only items 
- Line dry linens whenever possible 

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

Reduce solid waste
- Track overall solid waste costs 
- Have a numeric goal to reduce overall materials that go to the landfill 
- Instruct housekeeping staff to save and reuse unopened items 
- 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 recycled content 
- Use cloth napkins 
- 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 
- Reuse or donate shipping and packing supplies (peanuts, bubble wrap, etc.) 
- Purchase recycled paper with a high-percentage recycled content 
- Make double-sided photocopies and avoid making extra photocopies 
- Use electronic correspondence and forms when possible 
- Use green cleaning products that are dispensed in bulk 
- Install carpet with sustainable or recycled content and low-VOC adhesives 
- Use reused building materials or those from sustainable sources 
- Use latex, low or no-VOC paints 
- Perform preventative maintenance on all appliances, HVAC systems, plumbing, and vehicles 
- Use integrated pest management (IPM) 
- Minimize use of pesticides and herbicides in landscaping 

Use water efficiently
- Track overall water usage and wastewater costs 
- Have established a numeric goal to reduce water consumption over time 
- Perform preventative maintenance to stop drips and leaks 
- Use water-flow metering to discover leaks and areas of high use 
- Have installed high efficiency dishwashers 
- 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 
- 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 
- Have established a numeric goal to reduce energy usage over time 
- Calculate the environmental impacts of the facilitys energy usage by using a pollution calculator 
- Use ENERGY STARs Benchmarking Tools for the Hospitality Industry 
- Have individual thermostats for each room; ensure they are correctly adjusted 
- Have installed ENERGY STAR-rated windows and doors 
- 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) 
- Use lighting sensors to turn on/off lights 
- Use occupancy sensors to turn on/off lights 
- 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 installed LED Exit Signs 
- Have adopted a policy/practice to minimize the use of lighting during night cleaning 
- Use alternative fuel, hybrid-electric, or electric vehicles 
- Achieved Gold LEED certification during the facility's construction 

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

The Mason Inn Conference Center and Hotel    The Mason Inn Conference Center and Hotel

For more information on The Mason Inn Conference Center and Hotel, see www.themasoninnva.com or contact Lyn Locke at lyn.locke@themasoninnva.com or 703-865-5705.

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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