The Greening of Las Vegas

September 26, 2008 By: Glenn Haussman Travel Agent

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Sin City Goes Environmentally Friendly

Las Vegas has always been known for its love of green. In fact, the entire city seems built on the singular purpose of extricating as much green as possible from visitors to the “Neon Jungle.” But while cash will always be king, the city’s resort planners, developers and executives are now looking at a different kind of green. And this kind will tax the environment less while potentially saving operators big bucks. It’s a win-win situation that’s making deep inroads and changing the city’s mindset.

And not a minute too soon: Lake Mead is drying up and may become unusable as a water source by 2021, according to scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. At the same time, soaring energy costs are making it more expensive to operate facilities that literally contain millions of square footage needing lights and air conditioning.

When combined with the attention Al Gore brought to the environmental issue, a perfect storm is afoot—one that is bringing real change to the way things are done in this desert oasis. Expect all new resorts to seek a level of certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, program. LEED has levels of certification ranging from Standard to Platinum, each designed to highlight a stronger commitment to sustainability.

Depending on certification level, LEED can add 2 or more percent to the overall cost of a project. Although that might not seem like a lot, consider this: MGM MIRAGE’s CityCenter, under construction at the center of the Strip, is expected to cost $9 billion or more when complete. Adding just 1 percent tacks on almost $100 million to the total cost of the project.

That’s a lot of money, but over the lifetime of the CityCenter buildings, the cost savings will far exceed the upfront expense. And that doesn’t even take into account the water and electricity alone that will be saved during the next 50 or more years.

“People raise eyebrows because Las Vegas resorts are the ones that invented over-the-top indulgence and consumption. But we are in the middle of the Mojave Desert and resources are scarce,” says Gordon Absher, vice president of public affairs for MGM MIRAGE. “It’s good for the environment, good for the community and good for business.”

CityCenter is made up of eight separate components, each expected to attain at least Silver status. The resort is comprised of ARIA, a 61-story, 4,000-room resort casino; three non-gaming hotels, including a Mandarin Oriental; approximately 2,600 luxury residences; and The Crystals, CityCenter’s 500,000-square-foot retail and entertainment district. The casino at ARIA and its convention center are each considered separate entities for LEED consideration, said Absher.

Savings will be achieved in many different ways, including the incorporation of a highly efficient state-of-the-art central plant utilizing a combined heat and power co-generation system. Also, windows at ARIA and Vdara, a luxury condo, have a coating that helps to reduce heat transfer into the building by reflecting light. “Air-brows” or “shades” on the ARIA façade help to prevent overheating of hotel rooms by shading them from direct sun.

At ARIA and The Crystals, a minimum of 50 percent of all wood products used are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified, meaning the wood comes from forests certified to follow responsible forest management practices. During design, preference was given to materials with recycled content, reclaimed materials or that could be manufactured locally.

Each of the CityCenter buildings is designed for significant water savings each year, with ARIA alone saving an estimated 31 million gallons of water annually, roughly 34 percent within the building and 60 percent in outdoor landscaping. Overall, each building is eliminating more than 30 percent water waste.

The realization that so much could be saved has sparked widespread interest at other MGM MIRAGE resorts. For example, in 2007 Mandalay Bay initiated a trade show recycling program that now diverts an average 74 percent of waste from landfills to recycling. Excalibur implemented a simple cardboard recycling program and reduced its entire waste bill by 50 percent. Now it is looking to cut another 50 percent by recycling more waste.

The Palazzo
When the $1.9 billion The Palazzo Las Vegas opened earlier this year, the resort claimed a Silver certification. For now, that makes it the largest building in the world to have achieved such status. It’s also more than four times larger than the second-biggest Silver-certified building.

“From the beginning, we were determined to create Las Vegas’ first truly eco-friendly property and we are extremely proud to have achieved it and be recognized for it. There is an increasing necessity to employ ‘green’ construction principles and we are proud to be a leader in the evolution of environmentally focused building practices, not only on the Las Vegas Strip, but at Las Vegas Sands’ properties throughout the world,” said Sheldon G. Adelson, chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands Corp., at a ceremony last April recognizing the achievement.

According to The Palazzo, the property saves enough water to provide each Nevada citizen with 266 8-ounce glasses of water for a year and enough energy to light a 100-watt light bulb for 12,100 years.

Some examples of how savings were achieved include heating swimming pools with solar panels that also heat guestroom water; interior plumbing fixtures that use 37 percent less water than conventional buildings as a result of water-efficient showerheads, high-efficiency toilets and low-flow lavatory faucet aerators; moisture sensors that monitor real-time, site-specific air temperature, humidity, rainfall and other factors to provide daily watering cycle adjustment; and a waste recycling program implemented from demolition through completion that diverted more than 70 percent of waste from the landfill. During construction, the building’s structural steel averaged 95 percent recycled content, while the concrete averaged a 26 percent recycled content rate.

Off the Strip
It’s not just hotels on the Las Vegas Strip that know going green is no gamble. The Las Vegas Springs Preserve (702-822-7700) is a great way to spend a few hours in town. The green-friendly attraction features a reconstructed desert wetland, working green building designs and other examples of environmentally friendly construction. It also has 13 LEED Platinum Certified buildings.

“Vegas is associated with excess, and being a party town makes this an ideal location to do these sorts of activities,” says Jay Nichols, director, Springs Preserve. “We are trying to educate people as to how to make smart choices for sustainability.”

The facility also offers classes such as water-smart gardening and organic cooking, and will regularly display the latest technology to assist in sustainability. In its inaugural season last year, more than 200,000 people visited the attraction.

And for a guilt-free meal while in Vegas, the newly opened LBS: A Burger Joint at the Red Rock Resort will incorporate artisanal, handmade ingredients and earth-friendly menu items. You won’t find any prepackaged or frozen items here. Instead, LBS features locally sourced ingredients wherever possible. This eliminates both the need for packaging and the use of extra fuel needed to truck in ingredients from all over the country.

Green and organic items served will include homemade pickles, dry-aged meat, homemade desserts, organic beers and wines and even recyclable straws.

“Our goal is to create an eco-friendly restaurant from the design of the space to the food and beverage program,” says the restaurant’s chef, Anthony Meidenbauer. He said tables are made from 100-year-old doors reclaimed from New York City and the wall and ceiling are lined with recycled license plates that make an American flag design, which is apropos for its rustic Americana theme. Even takeout packaging all comes from recycled materials and can be recycled again after use.

“Being sustainable is not just [being] organic, but supporting local vendors,” Meidenbauer says. “And while our restaurant may cost a little bit more, we are going to offer a better product, so they will feel good about that at the end of the day.”