Hinanoyado Chitose

The area where Matsunoyama Onsen is located, Tokamachi in Niigata prefecture, is well known for its views of beautiful rice terraces. These are rice fields that have been layered into the mountain slopes like a series of steps. Chitose contributes to environmental conservation but using these terraces to grow their rice, and also head out into the mountains to gather wild plants and mushrooms. When humans venture into the mountains in this manner it helps to maintain the borders between them and the wildlife, and maintains the balance in between the countryside and its ecosystems.
The potential in the hot springs at Matsunoyama Onsen is also being explored for other avenues other than bathing. They've implemented a system of binary geothermal power generation which has a low environmental impact, that takes advantage of the high heat of the waters that come out of the source at around 90 degrees. At the moment the electricity is being sold to an electricity company but there are plans to use it in the onsen in the future. The onsen waters from Matsunoyama Onsen are rich in minerals so onsen mist is being sold as a skin toner too. The power generation and development of local products is being carried out by a town-run travel agency called "Manma" which the owner of Chitose has been instrumental in setting up.
Another point worth mentioning is that Chitose has two electric vehicle chargers.

Dinner at Chitose is an impressive affair with a meal packed with regional ingredients and the culture of Matsunoyama. Each item on the menu has a story behind it which increases the enjoyment of the meal as guest savor unique items from Yukiguni such as fermented ingredients, traditional cuisine, pork slow cooked in the heat of the onsen water, and a hot pot that captures the essence of the rice terraces. Breakfast too is full of dishes from Matsunoyama heritage including rice that has been grown on the rice terraces perched on the mountain slopes.
There are a range of activities run by the local tourism agency which is operated by the town called Manma, such as learning to make the slow cooked onsen pork that is used in the meals, or cooking bread made with onsen water and rice flour over the traditional irori hearth.
Over eighty percent of staff at Chitose come from the local area, the ryokan itself takes a leading role in events in the region, it is always welcoming of offering work experience to the local community.