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NAME OF PROPERTY |
Kingfisher Ecolodge |
RESPONSIBLE PERSON FOR THIS APPLICATION |
Mr. Massimo Mera |
POSITION |
Managing Directr / Owner |
ADDRESS OF PROPERTY
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Ban Khiet Ngong, Champasak Province |
COUNTRY |
Laos |
PHONE NUMBER
inc. area code |
(856) 030 5345016 |
WEBSITE |
http://www.kingfisherecolodge.com |
E-MAIL |
info@kingfisherecolodge.com |
TYPE OF PROPERTY |
Eco lodge |
NUMBER OF ROOMS |
8 |
MAXIMUM NUMBER OF GUESTS |
20 |
ECO-CERTIFICATION(s) |
No |
ECO AWARDS |
No |
GENERAL ECO INFO
- Do you have an environmental and/or social sustainability policy YES
/ NO
If yes, please attach.
As described in the Green Globe 21 web site (http://www.greenglobe21.com/),
the core set of eight principles is that ecotourism (hence an ecolodge)
product should:
1) Focus on giving visitors the opportunity to personally and
directly experience nature (Natural Area Focus).
- The lodge's design has been planned to give as much as possible
to our guests a close contact with nature in its wild form.
2) Provide opportunities to experience nature in ways that lead
to greater understanding, appreciation and enjoyment (Interpretation).
- In collaboration with the Xe Pian Natural park management, local
villagers and NGOs working in Laos we are able to provide trekking,
hiking and other natural activities inside the park.
3) Represent best practice for environmentally sustainable tourism
(Environmental Sustainability Practice).
- All toilets, sinks and showers wastewater is treated through
anaerobic filter system tanks to minimize environmental pollution
that every human activity produces. Continuous training among our
employees and written advices to our customers are used to minimize
water and energy consumption as well as waste production, recycling
and waste composting is used as much as possible. No exotic trees
or plants are used in the resort landscaping. We firmly refuse
to buy and offer to our customers (as food or souvenir) any kind
of wildlife or wildlife product, as well as we discourage this
activity among the villagers.
4) Contribute directly to the conservation of natural areas (Contribution
to Conservation).
- We work in close collaboration with the Xe Pian Natural park
management to achieve this principle. One example is our constant
monitoring of the surrounding area against illegal hunting and
logging.
5) Provide ongoing contributions to the local community (Benefiting
Local Communities).
- All our employees are hired among local people, most of our activities
involve services from the local communities (guides, food, elephants,
transportation, etc.) as well as most of the food supplied to our
guests is of local origin, thus providing an extra revenue for
the area's economy.
A percentage (5%) of the income of the activities sold to our guests
is set apart in a fund to support the local primary school.
6) Be sensitive to, interpret and involve the culture/s existing
in the area (Cultural Respect).
- Friendly and cooperative relationship has been built between
the lodge and the villagers. Before and during the lodge operation
we have closely followed local customs (like ceremonies to please
the spirits and so on) as a form of respect. Written indications
are given to our guests in order to avoid possible conflicts or
offensive acts towards the local people.
7) Consistently meets consumer expectations (Customer Satisfaction).
- This is our primary concern, a written feedback form is provided
to our guests in order to improve ourselves through the customer's
point of view.
8) Be marketed and promoted honestly and accurately so that realistic
expectations are formed (Responsible Marketing).
- We strongly believe in this principle, we would be pleased to
receive any complaint, comment or suggestion from your side if
we have not been able to comply with your expectations.
- Do you have an environmental Management System YES
/ NO
If yes, please attach.
- Brief Description of property – aim, size, facilities
(150 words max)
Our aim is to provide our guests with a kind of accommodation
that brings them closed to nature and its wonderful world while
trying to have the lowest impact both on the environment and
local population. That's why we have only 8 rooms at the moment
and we do expect to extend to a maximum of 12 room in the next
few years. We have a restaurant with mainly local food but also
a bit of Italian food. Our services include internet connection,
international phone calls, laundry and transport arrangement.
- Brief description of location (100 words max)
We are located inside Xe Pian Protected Area in Southern Laos
(Champasak province) just on the edge of one of the biggest wetlands
of Laos. We are 60 km from the town of Pakse where there is
an international airport.
ENERGY CONSUMPTION / CONSERVATION
ENERGY
- Do you use any renewable energy? YES / NO
If yes, what approximate percentage
and please describe
We have solar panels in the guest rooms to provide energy for
the lights, they cover about 10% of our needs.
- Please describe any energy saving devices in use, and energy
saving programmes you have, and how can guests/visitors participate
We use solar heating systems for water heating, all our light
bulbs are 8W low consumption. We switch off most of the outside
lights during the night. In case of need an emergency flash light
is located in each guest room. We invite our guests by written
advice to switch off all lights when not needed.
GARDENS – ORGANIC FOOD – RECYCLING-CHEMICALS
- If you have gardens, please describe any organic or chemical
farming practices.
We plant rice in a small plot of land during the rainy season
and vegetables in the dry season. No Chemicals are used as the
peat that forms the soil is incredibly fertile.
- Do you have a purchasing policy - local/organic/good practice/fair
trade or any other? YES/ NO
It is our policy to buy everything that is available locally
produced or manufactured, we buy fair trade products made
in Laos (Jams, beer, wine, honey, tea). In this part of Laos
at least, all food could be considered organic as chemicals are
still unknown and too expensive for the farmers to buy.
If yes, please describe or attach?
- Please describe any composting or recycling programmes, and
how, if possible, guests/visitors are encouraged to participate.
We recycle carton, glass, plastic and aluminium. Food scraps
are used to feed our chickens, ducks and rabbits. Everything
else is transported by us to the nearest waste disposal
site (70 km).
CHEMICALS AND CLEANING PRODUCTS
- Approximately, what percentage of cleaning products used are
chemical, and what percentage bio degradable; please describe
Unfortunately in Laos we have not yet found biodegradable cleaning
products on sale if not some dish cleaner, it's difficult to
give a percentage but I would say it is 70% chemicals and 30%
bio degradable.
We encourage our guests by written notice not to change their
linen and bath towels if they stay more than one night in order
to reduce use of detergents.
WATER
- Please describe your water supply, and any water conservation
programmes, and how, if possible, guests/visitors are encouraged
to participate.
We use a deep well for our supply, all our water taps are water
saving, we use double flush toilets (3/6 litres).
We encourage our guests, by written notice, to not change
their linen and bath towels if they stay more than one night
in order to reduce use of water.
We have a very small portion of gardening in our compound to
reduce use of water.
- Please describe your water purification and waste water treatment
systems.
We have to filter underground water because it is rich in dissolved
iron, we use chemical free filtering systems (sand, gravel, active
charcoal, manganese sand, resin sand). All our waste water is
treated in fibreglass anaerobic septic tanks.
FLORA AND FAUNA CONSERVATION / PRESERVATION
- Describe any flora or fauna conservation/projects you are involved
in and how you encourage your guests to participate?
At the moment we are not directly involved in any conservation
projects (which by the way are non existent in this protected
area as far as I know) but we do help the protected area's staff
in monitoring the surrounding area against poaching and illegal
logging. We encourage our guests to take part in our activities
in order to support the local population in the effort to reduce
poaching by giving an alternate income to buy food.
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENTS
- Please describe what you feel is your single most important
eco achievement? (200 words max).
We are new to the place we are located in but at the moment
I think that the great reduction of poaching activity in our
area, thanks to our monitoring and reporting to the authorities,
has been our outstanding achievement.
MONITORING / FEEDBACK / TRAINING
- Please describe any staff and customer eco training/education
programmes
We educate our staff on a regular basis to respect
nature in all its forms, to not litter the environment, to
save energy and water.
We provide written information to our guests about the Xe Pian
protected area including the threat to the local environment
and how to save water in simple ways.
- Please describe any materials you have to educate your guests
(brochures, posters, pamphlets, etc.)?
We use small information books prepared by the lodge. We use
posters and brochures printed by the National Tourism Authority
for a culturally sensitive travel in Laos. We also use our website
for those purposes.
- Please describe how you monitor, maintain, and/or minimise
your environmental impact?
We do not have a monitoring system yet. As described above we
recycle, we minimize use of water and detergents, we do not dispose
of garbage in the environment. We minimize use of energy. We
are keeping the number of guests low by not building many rooms.
We used mainly local material such as wood, grass and bamboo
for the buildings.
Do you get customer feedback? YES / NO
If yes, please describe how you collect the feedback, and what
you do with it.
We leave a feedback form in each room asking guests to leave
their comments and answers to the questions. All data is collected
and revised in order to find out which are our strongest and
weakest points in order to carry on the necessary adjustment
to our policy and operation, thus giving a better service to
our customers and the local area.
LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
- What percentage of your staff are local nationals?
100% of which 50% are from the nearby village
- Please describe what you do to minimise your negative impacts on the local
community, and any cultural awareness, community activities or local sponsorships
programmes, and any other ways you try to ensure the local community
benefit from your business.
We minimise impact on the local community by following their traditions
and customs whenever necessary and especially when interacting with them.
We have written advice to our guests on do's and dont's in the Laotian culture.
We sponsor the local primary school by putting aside 5% of the price our
customer pays for our activities and collecting any kind of donation our
guests want to give for the school, As soon as we have collected enough money,
we discuss with the school teachers about what is needed most by the children
and we buy the material and hand it over to the school.
We always involve the local people in our operations, either by employing
them on a regular basis (and providing on-site training), paying fair
salaries well above the minimum one and with bonuses related to their performance
and giving all benefits given by local labour laws. We always employ local
guides, accommodation and food from villagers and mahouts with their elephants
during our activities.
We used only local labour to build our lodge.
- If you have a green / eco certification label, please give details and
explain:
- your reasons for joining the scheme
- The benefits you feel you receive
- Any other positive or negative points
If you do not have a green certification / label, please explain
- Your reasons for NOT joining any schemes,
- Any benefits you feel you are missing,
- Anything else.
We do not have a green certification because of the cost and complexity
of the procedure.
We miss a well known certification label that would help us to better market
our kind of accommodation in the ecotourism sector.
- Anything else you feel is relevant or important.
Please provide as much documentary evidence as possible.
Please provide 2 references, preferably one from the local or national government
tourist authority or a registered NGO (Non-profit Non Governmental Organization)
locally, and the other from your certification scheme if you are in one.
As a reference I can mention:
Mr. Paul Eshoo:
WWF ecotourism advisor in Xe Pian National Protected Area Paul.Eshoo@wwfgreatermekong.org )
Mr. Steven Schipani:
Team Leader, Community-Based Tourism Component
NTAL-ADB Mekong Tourism Development Project
National Tourism Authority of Lao PDR
email: sschipa@hotmail.com
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