"We share our concern for the fragile nature of the park. We continuously look for ways to minimize the impact of our business on the environment. We play an active role in supporting the National Park Service´s resource management process."
-- Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts at Yosemite, Inc.
Established in 1915 by brothers Charles, Louis and Marvin Jacobs, Delaware North Companies has grown from a small entrepreneurial business selling foods at theaters into a global leader in hospitality, food service, retail and entertainment. With annual revenues exceeding $2 billion, and employing more than 50,000 people, Delaware North is also one of the largest privately held companies in the United States and has been on Forbes magazine’s list of “Top Privately Held Companies” for the past several years.
Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts is one of six divisions of Delaware North Companies, a nearly century-old global hospitality and food service company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. The company’s Parks & Resorts sector came into existence in 1992 following a successful bid for the largest contract in the U.S. National Park Service: Yosemite National Park.
Since then, its portfolio has grown to include some of the most unique properties in North America: Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex; Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Sequoia National Parks; Niagara Falls and Jones Beach, New York State Parks; Old Town San Diego, California State Parks, The Lodge & Conference Center at Geneva-on-the-Lake, Ohio State Park; and Fresno Reservations located in California. In addition, with the purchase of Tenaya Lodge in the early 2000s, Delaware North entered the private-sector hotel ownership/management arena, and has been developing that facet of its business ever since. Harrison Hot Springs Resort & Spa in British Columbia is another company-owned destination resort. Managed properties include Gideon Putnam Resort in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Environmental Stewardship
Introduction - GreenPath® Our Environmental Management System
One of Delaware North Companies core values is managing our natural resources and being a good steward to the environment. The company developed its award-winning, formal environment management system GreenPath® in 1999 and has continued to develop it ever since. At that time, Delaware North was the first hospitality company to have an environmental system registered to the standards established by the International Organization for Standardization.
While GreenPath® came out of the company’s Parks & Resorts operations at such Special Places, it has now expanded to encompass the stadiums, gaming facilities and airports Delaware North operates around the world.
GreenPath® has captured national and international recognition with a number of awards won. It has made a difference by helping us conserve resources and prevent pollution. It’s broken down department and operating company walls. And, most importantly, it continues to demonstrate our commitment to doing the right thing.
A sense of environmental stewardship has been a part of Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts culture since 1999. Recognizing the importance of protecting the Special Places in which they operate for future generations; Delaware North sought after an environmental management system and looked to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Derived from the Greek word isos, meaning “equal”, ISO develops international standards for a variety of industries. Specifically, ISO has developed stringent standards for environmental management known as ISO 14001. These standards provide Delaware North with a management tool in order to minimize environmental impacts caused by its activities and to continually improve environmental performance. ISO requires that all components of an active management system be reflected throughout the organization for effectiveness.
Registration to the standard put forth by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 14001) emerged as a way of accomplishing environmental stewardship. Based on ISO 14001 standards, Delaware North developed GreenPath®, a formal, documented, comprehensive Environmental Management System (EMS). This EMS has specific policy and procedural requirements and offers flexibility so that it can be adopted anywhere and Delaware North is able to incorporate GreenPath® into all business operations. GreenPath® is highly valued and today fourteen of the fifteen of Delaware North’s properties maintain ISO 14001 registration demonstrating the company’s commitment to environmental excellence in the rigorous and formal manner set by ISO.
Please view Delaware North Parks & Resorts Corporate Evironmental Policy for detailed information.
For more information visit our GreenPath website.
