Lawsuit filed against moldy hotel with latent asbestos

TAMPA, FL — A former employee at the Westshore Hotel has filed a lawsuit in Hillsborough Circuit Court, claiming he was wrongfully dismissed for blowing the whistle on moldy and unsanitary conditions inside the hotel, according to WFLA-TV.

Tom Voorhees, the former hotel engineer who seeks lost pay, medical expenses and punitive damages for possible health issues, alleges the hotel knowingly allowed employees to work and guests to stay in mold-infested, asbestos-contaminated rooms, the story stated.

Voorhees said: "Nobody in that hotel during that whole time was protected from anything, children and families from mold and mildew, sleeping on moldy mattresses that were covered up. Some of the mattresses were thrown out, most of them are back in the rooms and guests are sleeping on them. I was definitely directly handling asbestos with no protection because I didn't know it was there. We re-did the ceilings in a lot of bathrooms. Some of the bathrooms came crashing down from water leaks. We pick that stuff up and all the broken material, it's all asbestos. I'm not there anymore, so maybe that's a good thing, maybe that's a bad thing. Out of a job is better than being dead."

According to the story, the previous owner of the hotel, who lost the rights due to a property foreclosure, failed to maintain the hotel and at least 40 of the 235 guest rooms were infested with mold.

Although UBS Real Estate Securities owns the property, the court appointed Janus Hotels and Resorts Inc. to run the hotel; Janus hired a licensed mold remediation company when it took over management of the hotel in January, the story noted.

Voorhees and other hotel maintenance workers claim the mold contamination, which they tried to remedy with a diluted bleach solutions, was so bad that it covered furniture, televisions, ceilings and mattresses, the story added.

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Stony Brook unveils LEED-certified library

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — Stony Brook University recently unveiled its new Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified library, according to Newsday.

Located on the university's Southampton campus, the two-story, 30,000-square-foot building allows for studying, conversing, lounging and consuming caffeinated beverages at the student-run cafe, the story stated.

Sustainable elements of the building include: Skylights and windows that provide natural lighting to 75 percent of the building; a stormwater collection system; controls to ensure minimal energy use; and low volatile organic compound (VOC) furnishings certified by the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI), the story noted.

Southampton Dean and Vice President Mary Pearl said: "It will be the heart of campus. It is the right thing to do to commit to green building standards. It's the responsibility of individuals and institutions to minimize our carbon impact."

The official opening of the multipurpose building, which was last Saturday, was well-attended by students, parents, staff and local residents, the story added.

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FEA and the IFMA Foundation release first in Sustainability 'How-To Guide' Series

FAIRFAX, VA — Facility Engineering Associates (FEA), in partnership with the International Facility Management Association Foundation (IFMA), recently released the first of the Sustainability “How-To Guide” Series, according to a press release.

According to the release, Chris Hodges, principal of FEA and an active member of IFMA, has authored this first guide, entitled Getting Started.

The Getting Started guide was created to assist facility managers with a step-by-step process for assessing an organization; finding a starting point; identifying initiatives; evaluating their value; and implementing, measuring and monitoring their effectiveness, the release stated.

By the end of the current calendar year, there will be a minimum of four additional guides hosted on the foundation's website, www.ifmafoundation.org, with another eight scheduled for completion in 2010, the release noted.

Teena Shouse, senior facility management consultant at FEA and a past IFMA chair, said: "In IFMA's quest to equip and enable facility management professionals through education, this guide will clarify and lead them through what can be a very complex issue. Now, when someone asks you 'How do I get started?' you can refer them to this informative and well-designed guide to sustainability."

To obtain your own copy of the Getting Started guide, please visit FEA's website at www.feapc.com, the release added.

Hotel sued for only hiring Hispanic housekeppers

MOUNT VERNON, VA — A discrimination lawsuit was filed against the owners of a Best Western hotel, alleging that they only hire Hispanic housekeepers, according to WHSV-TV.

The Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) filed the suit last week on behalf of three non-Hispanic women who lost their jobs at the hotel in April 2007, the story stated.

The suit alleges that a new owner, Mount Vernon Holdings LLC, which bought the hotel in 2007, forced employees to reapply for their jobs; only Hispanics were hired for housekeeping positions, the story noted.

The three women all worked at the hotel for at least 15 years before it was purchased and the non-Hispanic employees were allegedly replaced, the story added.

According to the story, hotel managers refrained from commenting on the situation.

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Clean standard for K-12 schools in development

LINCOLNWOOD, IL — ISSA and its research partner, the Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI), recently completed Phase I of their research — consisting of laboratory and limited field testing in 70 schools and two day-care facilities — to determine the best methodologies and measurement systems that ultimately will form the foundation for a clean standard for K-12 schools, according to a press release.

According to the release, ISSA hosted multiple sessions at the 2009 ISSA/INTERCLEAN^® North America Trade Show, addressing its K-12 research progress in more detail.

Results from Phase I research, which consisted of both lab and field testing in schools, suggest that adenosine triphosphate (ATP) measuring devices appear to be a promising and appropriate approach to detecting significant differences between "dirty" and "clean" surfaces in schools; in addition, a comprehensive approach to defining "clean" and indoor environmental quality in K-12 schools is being developed, the release stated.

ISSA Director of Legislative Affairs Bill Balek said: "Based on the research conducted to date, ISSA is confident that this project will produce a scientific-based, pragmatic standard that will significantly improve the quality of the learning environment for students in K-12 schools across the nation and that will also provide ISSA members with a valuable tool that will help them succeed in today's demanding and increasingly more health conscious marketplace."

The goal of this three-year research project is the cooperative development of a science-based clean standard for K-12 schools that will be the springboard for industry data, training, measurement and certification programs, the release noted.

In addition to testing cleaning and measurement methods, performance metric data, such as student academic performance and absenteeism rates, are being provided by the participating school district; this aspect of the research will study the connection between indoor environmental quality, cleanliness and student health and performance, the release added.

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Study: Employees in green buildings more productive

BLOOMINGTON, IN — A University of San Diego study released in September found that employees working in green buildings are more productive than their counterparts in non-green facilities, according to a press release.

According to the release, this is a study that Stephen Ashkin, president of The Ashkin Group LLC and Sustainable Tool LLC, says is not receiving enough attention.

The study involved more than 2,000 workers from 154 different green buildings, all of whom formally worked in conventional, non-green facilities, the release stated.

The study found that: 45 percent of respondents reported an average of 2.9 fewer sick days in their new green location; nearly 43 percent of the employees agreed they were more productive in green buildings; 12 percent said they strongly agreed they were more productive in green buildings; and 45 percent noted little change, the release noted.

Interestingly, 10 percent of participants actually reported an increase in the number of sick days after moving to a green facility, the release added.

Ashkin said: “Many of these folks reporting no changes or even an increase in sick days were in Energy Star-labeled buildings that do not have indoor air quality (IAQ) requirements. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified buildings do have IAQ standards and that makes a big difference. They remind us of the many benefits of green buildings, which are not only fewer sick days and greater worker productivity, but enhanced employee retention, recruitment and worker morale.”

Kimberly-Clark Professional launches sustainability campaign

CHICAGO — Kimberly-Clark Professional launched a sustainability campaign today called Reduce Today, Respect Tomorrow that takes a bigger-picture approach to environmental sustainability and is the first truly global communications campaign developed by the company, according to a press release.

The central premise of the Reduce Today, Respect Tomorrow campaign is that focusing only on 100 percent recycled fiber content does not address the total picture, nor is it the best approach to environmental sustainability, the release stated.

Jan Spencer, president of Global Kimberly-Clark Professional, said: “Our ongoing efforts to achieve outstanding environmental performance are not just our responsibility as corporate citizens, they are vital to our success as a business. These efforts are also guided by global, company-wide objectives for improving operational performance in energy, water, waste, and environmental management systems.”

According to the release, Kimberly-Clark Professional looks at a bigger picture and strives to reduce environmental impact at every stage of a product’s lifecycle.

Superior product performance that allows customers to use less and waste less is a key component of Reduce Today, Respect Tomorrow and Kimberly-Clark Professional’s business strategy for a more sustainable future, the release noted.

If less is consumed in the first place, it often means there is less packaging waste, which further reduces the amount of waste to recycle or send to landfill, the release added.

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