Vermont has many programs in place that promote and protect our agriculture and support "green" practices on many levels.

Vermont's "Fresh Network" partners local farmers and food producers with restaurants and inns in the Green Mountain State. This is a win-win situation for all, as the freshest local food can reach the kitchens that serve of the flavor of Vermont.

Vermont's Green Hotels and Environmental Partners are using sound environmental management practices to reduce their impacts on the environment, improve their bottom line and satisfy customer demand for environmentally conscious lodging establishments.

The programs, Green Hotels in the Green Mountain and Vermont Business Environmental Partnership, provide assistance to innkeepers desiring to achieve the environmental standards set for the program goals.

Green Hotels are about saving - reducing material use, reducing waste, reducing electricity use, and ultimately reducing greenhouse gases often assessed as carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2E) - which all add up to saving money and the environment.

A Green Hotel is any Vermont lodging establishment that solidifies its commitment to environmental excellence by achieving a set of environmental standards. Although each property achieves these standards uniquely, each conducts an environmental opportunity assessment, adopts environmentally preferable practices, and develops an environmental management plan that guides its efforts to continually reduce the environmental consequences of its operations.

This statewide voluntary, environmental technical assistance and business recognition program, part of the Vermont Business Environmental Partnership, is designed to promote and recognize the work of Vermont lodgers who demonstrate daily that environmental and economic goals can be achieved simultaneously.

Green Hotels in the Green Mountain State