THE ECO LODGE SHIMANTO
KOCHI-KEN PREFECTURE

September, 2002 – Christopher Balfe, Director of HVS International’s ECOTEL^® Certification program, announced that the Eco Lodge Shimanto, in Kochi-ken prefecture, Japan, has satisfied all of the requirements to qualify as a Developing ECOTEL^®-Certified hotel. A resort and spa with 20 large suite-style rooms, the Eco Lodge Shimanto is built high on a hill overlooking Shimanto-gawa and the Pacific Ocean.  The resort’s developers have incorporated environmental responsibility into every aspect of its planning, including the materials selection and design, construction, and pre-opening phases of the new development. Once fully operational, the Eco Lodge Shimanto will seek to become one of the most environmentally responsible hotels in the world.

The new hotel is owned and managed by Japanese rail company JR-Shijoku, one of the seven privately held rail companies that control all rail transit in the country. This hotel is the first of several planned by the company that will focus on resort and spa demand. From the project’s onset, JR President Mr. Toshiyuki Umehara included the ECOTEL^® concept in the resort’s development; he further intends to incorporate eco-responsibility into every aspect of his company’s business. As Japan’s rail companies are known worldwide as leaders in technology and advancement, Mr. Toshiyuki Umehara hopes to set an example with these environmental initiatives.

The Eco Lodge Shimanto will unveil some new and very creative applications of the environmental effort at resort hotels.  For example, much of the landscaping has been completed using recycled rail ties emblazoned with the JR-Shijoku emblem, and turn-of-the-century wooden shipping barrels are used as part of the rain-water collection system that irrigates the grounds.

The Eco Lodge Shimanto will become fully operational at the end of 2002. A complete inspection of the resort will be completed by the ECOTEL^® Inspection Team sometime in early 2003 to evaluate the environmental effort, and to give the resort an ECOTEL^® Globe rating; hotels and resorts can be awarded from two to five Globes.

The ECOTEL^® Certification, managed by HVS Eco Services, is widely regarded as one of the hospitality industry’s most challenging tests of environmental responsibility. The criteria and the inspection system were designed by a team that included experts from the world-renowned environmental think-tank, the Rocky Mountain Institute, as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The ECOTEL^® criteria are updated every two years to keep current with evolving environmental trends in hospitality; thus, hotels must be re-inspected once every two years to retain their certified status. Furthermore, members must agree to unannounced inspections anytime during their two-year membership period.

HVS International was created in 1980 to satisfy the growing demand for reliable and well-documented hotel market studies and feasibility reports. With offices worldwide, HVS offers a vast range of services, including valuations, strategic analyses, development planning, litigation support, executive search, waste management, gaming and restaurant consulting, asset management, operational and management strategy development, property tax services, and timeshare consulting services.