Want to stay at a verifiably green hotel for your next vacation? Soon you’ll be able to choose from among dozens of hotel and resort projects, in various stages of construction or remodeling, that have registered with the US Green Building Council, aiming to achieve silver, gold or platinum LEED certification.

But so far only a handful of resorts, hotels and lodges, 13 at last count, have completed the LEED certification process. These get-aways, which include upscale, urban hotels; trendy spas and woodsy lodges, have met the LEED standards, which requires that building projects consider the environment in how they locate their structures; choose materials with a lighter environmental impact; recycle or reduce construction waste, and conserve energy and water.

The 13 green pioneers:

• Avalon Hotel and Spa — Portland, Ore., US (pictured)
  
• GAIA Napa Valley — San Francisco, Calif., US
  
• Kandalama Hotel — Damulla, Sri Lanka
  
• Len Foote Hike Inn — Dawsonville, Ga., US
  
• Orchard Garden Hotel — San Francisco, Calif., US
  
• Snowmass Golf Clubhouse — Aspen, Colo., US
  
• The Ambrose — Santa Monica, Calif., US
  
• The John James Audubon Lodge & Camp — Charlotte, N.C., US
  
• The Lodge and Spa at Callaway Gardens — Pine Mountain, Ga., US
  
• University of Maryland Inn & Conference — Adelphi, Md., US
  
• Vancouver Conference Center & Hotel — Vancouver, Wash., US
  
• Palazzo — Las Vegas, Nevada, US
  
• Unity Village Hotel - Kansas City, Missouri, US

**LEED certification of building projects differs from the certification by the Green Hotels Association. While LEED focuses on construction and energy consumption; the GRE, which also looks at energy conservation, more closely analyzes daily operations, giving points for hotels that use bulk soaps, low-toxic cleaners, natural pesticides and less food packaging.

Chart source: The US Green Building Council.

For more on green living, go to greenrightnow.com.

Copyright © 2008 | Distributed by Noofangle Media

Don’t be fooled. Gasoline prices won’t be bumping around $2 a gallon for long. Driving a car with good fuel economy still makes sense. Higher mpg means lower operating costs for the household budget and fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Happily, car shoppers today have a myriad of options among fuel frugal 2009 cars. Clint Williams of Green Right Now put together this list of 30 models that get 30 miles per gallon. Click each model for more details at Green Right Now:

• Audi TT
• Chevrolet Aveo
• Chevrolet Cobalt XFE
• Chevrolet HHR
• Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid
• Chrysler Sebring
• Ford Focus
• Ford Escape Hybrid
• Honda Civic Hybrid
• Honda Fit
• Hyundai Accent
• Hyundai Elantra
• Kia Optima
• Kia Rio
• Mazda 3
• Mini Cooper
• Nissan Altima Hybrid
• Nissan Versa
• Pontiac G3
• Pontiac G5
• Pontiac Vibe
• Saturn Astra
• Saturn Aura Hybrid
• Saturn Vue Hybrid
• Scion XD
• Smart fortwo
• Suzuki SX4
• Toyota Corolla
• Toyota Yaris
• Volkswagen Jetta TDI

For more on green cars, see Green Right Now.