Long ago realizing that maintaining our pristine environment means everything to the success of the Bahamas, the Hope Town Harbour Lodge has steadily become a shade of darker green in their operating procedures . “Greening up “our act has been gratifying and guests and staff alike agree, we are getting quite good at it !
We were proud that recently at their annual awards program, we were the example the Ministry of Tourism used to praise as a “progressively green property”. Last year at these same awards, our General Manager, Tom Hazel ,won the Environmental Award for the individual who had been a sterling example of Environmental Stewardship.
The Lodge has been an environmental partner with the Hope Town Primary School for many years. The school uses the beach and swim to patch reef directly in front of the Lodge as their International award winning UNESCO project study beach. The school partnered with the community to help plant back the sea oats on the dunes in front of the Lodge .Recently the students cut a huge fishing net off the reef and that net is now in its second life as a barricade preventing erosion from washout to the side of the Reef Bar and Grill. Students are now doing comparison studies and water testing to see if over many years, climate change will cause any changes to occur on our island and in particular, the Lodge reef and beach.
We were proud to host a UNESCO Climate Change Conference at the Lodge this past summer. This conference was facilitated by local school Principal, Candace Key , who also works nights at the Lodge in the Office. Teachers came from several Bahamian Islands and many other Caribbean Islands to attend the important conference. The environmental educators and the Int. facilitators were so pleased with the conference facilities,rooms and meals that another work shop is being planned at the Lodge for July 2010 by this same group.
We are a popular choice of accommodations for the Nature Conservancy several times a year as well. We are anxious to provide accommodations and meals for conferences, work shops , family re-unions , art groups, and weddings all during the year.
Our establishment was the first business in Hope Town to procure and use the eco-ware line of bio-degradable take out containers , straws and utensils. This unique line is made of plant starch. This is one way we seek to keep plastic off our beaches , out of our crystal clear waters and dump.
We use a line of cleaners that has a reputation for being gentle on our earth and consequently, better for the bodies that walk or lie on surfaces and lines that have been cleaned with them. Speaking of linens--- we place signs on visitor beds asking if they would like to join our efforts to conserve water by choosing not to have linens and towels changed each day. Of course for those that still choose to have fresh linens each day, we are happy to oblige.
Reduce, Re-use and Re-cycle are the buzz words of environmental caring. At the Lodge we use sodas out of the “gun” at the bar in an effort to reduce the use of cans. Proudly we re-cycle and re-use all of our cooking oil as well ! A local contractor turns it into bio-diesel to run his machinery !
Nature knows best-- and Mother Nature provides us with plenty of seaweed on our beach that is collected and used as all natural mulch for our multitude of plants the visitors so enjoy.
Stay tuned as our operations continue to turn green—all the while enjoying the unchanging, inviting , beautiful Caribbean colours of brilliant blue sky and warm turquoise sea under a brightly shining yellow sun .
