Our Commitment To Sustainability

Sustainability is deeply ingrained in Delaware North’s culture, at the Grand Canyon and across our operations. Our proprietary stewardship program, GreenPath®, helps ensure we focus intently on corporate social responsibility, carefully manage our environmental impact, and positively contribute to the National Parks and the communities we serve.

Our Sustainability Commitments

Sustainability is deeply ingrained in Delaware North’s culture, at the Grand Canyon and across our operations. Our proprietary stewardship program, GreenPath®, helps ensure we focus intently on corporate social responsibility, carefully manage our environmental impact, and positively contribute to the National Parks and the communities we serve.

Purchasing

• Purchase and use environmentally friendly products whenever available and feasible
• Ensure 70% of retail products sold are made in the USA
• Dedicate 50% of the Desert View Trading Post retail space to culturally tribe-specific handicrafts, jewelry, and artwork
• Ensure that at least 30% of foods purchased are local, sustainable, and/or organic
• Purchase 90% of food ingredients within 190 miles of the property
• Purchase hormone- and antibiotic-free meat products
• Provide 100% of coffee, tea, chocolate, and hot chocolate from fair-trade or rainforest-certified sources
• Offer at least 40% of our beverage menu items without added sugar

Waste

Working directly with the National Park Service, achieved 57% waste diversion from the landfill in 2020 – with a goal to achieve 65% diversion by 2022 and zero waste at the Grand Canyon by 2025 through the following practices:

• Using reusable cups, dishware, and silverware at Yavapai Tavern and Restaurant when possible
• Donating Canyon Village Market food products nearing expiration to our local food pantry to benefit the community
• Educating guests on the impact of straws through The Last Straw campaign, using straw-free lids at our coffee operations, and providing PHASE compostable straws when requested
• Responsibly sourcing recyclable or compostable single-use packaging whenever possible
• Recycling electronic waste with an environmentally ethical zero-waste-certified company twice a year
• Donating usable construction items, furniture, and soft goods to local charities and communities
• Issuing all new employees reusable cups for use in the workplace
• Using refillable bottles and washable rags for cleaning
• Recycling cigarette butts collected from our facility into plastic lumber used to make items like our picnic tables in front of the Canyon Village Market and Desert View Market
• Only offering paper bags and reusable bags in our stores

Water and Energy

• Reduce both water use and energy use 40% by 2025

Sustainability in Action

You can help!

Reduce, reuse, recycle, refill
Remember to reduce waste, reuse materials when possible, and recycle. In partnership with the National Park Service, Delaware North at Grand Canyon National Park manages waste using single-stream recycling, where machines and employees sort waste at a nearby sorting facility to maximize the benefits of recycling. No special bins required! We’re also committed to offering a variety of reusable water bottles and conveniently located filling stations throughout the park.

Participate in our linen-reuse program
Help reduce energy and water consumption by hanging up towels for reuse and placing your water conservation card on the nightstand to reuse bed linens.

Conserve water and energy
Reduce water consumption by shortening your showers, keeping faucets off when not in use, and reporting any water leaks to the front desk staff. Please remember to turn off lights, TVs, heating and air-conditioning units, and equipment when you leave the room or when not in use.

Reduce CO2 emissions: ride, bike, or walk

At the Grand Canyon, we encourage you to enjoy a hike, ride a bike, carpool with friends, or tour the South Rim on our free shuttle bus system. Visit nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/shuttle-buses.htm to learn more.

Join us in sustainable eating
Delaware North at the Grand Canyon is committed to providing sustainable food that is organically grown, locally grown, or otherwise produced in a way that minimizes the environmental and sociological impacts of its production or shipment.

Hike smart – leave no trace
While enjoying the Grand Canyon’s numerous hiking trails, please remain on all paths and walkways and remember to hike smart: properly plan ahead, understand your hiking limitations, remain on all marked trails, bring plenty of food and water, and always leave no trace. Never approach wild animals. It’s dangerous (and illegal) to feed wild animals in any national park.

Park smart
Never leave pets, children, or valuables in an unattended vehicle.

Bike-friendly workplace
In 2020, Delaware North at Grand Canyon was designated a bike-friendly workplace by the League of American Bicyclists. Our bronze-level designation was based on the following:

• Free long-term employee bike rental program with a fleet of bikes
• Bike racks for guests and employees at all lodging, retail, and dining locations
• Lodging near the Grand Canyon National Park Greenway trail and Grand Canyon free bike-friendly shuttle bus
• Sponsorship of the Annual Grand Canyon Sustainability Fair Fix-It Clinic where community members bring in bikes for repair
• Delaware North employee incentives for biking to work through the GreenPath® program
• Employee discounts on bicycle accessories at Grand Canyon Outfitters