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The Butterfly Club

NAME OF PROPERTY

Ojo del Mar

RESPONSIBLE PERSON FOR THIS APPLICATION

Nico Fischer

POSITION

Owner

ADDRESS OF PROPERTY

 

Peninsula de Osa, Cabo Matapalo

COUNTRY

Costa Rica

PHONE NUMBER
inc. area code

506 735 55 31

WEBSITE

http://www.ojodelmar.com

E-MAIL

ojodelmar@yahoo.de

TYPE OF PROPERTY

Eco lodge

NUMBER OF ROOMS

5 cabins

MAXIMUM NUMBER OF GUESTS

15

ECO-CERTIFICATION(s)

 

ECO AWARDS

 

GENERAL ECO INFO

  • Do you have an environmental and/or social sustainability policy        YES

If yes, please attach.

  • Do you have an environmental Management System                                    YES

If yes, please attach.

  • Brief Description of property – aim, size, facilities (150 words max)

1,5 ha Beachfront , 5 cabins and restaurant in lush tropical gardens, Yoga studio, Spa,

  
  • Brief description of location (100 words max)

Southern Costa Rica, Peninsula de Osa, in the Golfo dulce (one of only 5 tropical fjords on earth !), nestled between the ocean and the tropical rainforest, off the grid !

  

ENERGY CONSUMPTION / CONSERVATION

  • Do you use any renewable energy? YES

      If yes, please describe (max 100 words).

We ONLY use renewable energy, solar power.

  
  • What percentage of your power is made from renewable energy?
  • Do you use any energy saving devices? YES

If yes, please describe (max 100 words).

  • Do you have programmes to encourage energy conservation?  YES

If yes, please describe (max 100 words).

Nico is the author of the book ‘Living in the Jungle|’, a handbook about sustainable living in this area. Power resources are a big part in it. The book is made especially for landowners  to give helpful information about construction, gardening, power, water, waste, sewage,  recycling, organic food, ethic guidelines, and much more …

  

GARDENS – ORGANIC FOOD – RECYCLING

  • Do you have gardens? YES
  • If yes, are they organic? YES
  • Do you encourage your food suppliers to be organic?  YES

      If yes, how?

We support the local farmers market which delivers organic food from local farmers in the mountains. We are one of only a few lodges that support this market till now and hope it will grow in the future as Costa Rica is still known for using a lot of chemicals for farming !

  
  • Do you compost your waste where possible? YES
  • Do you practice any other recycling? YES
  • If yes, please describe? (100 words max).

Nico is co founder and part of WOO, Women of the Osa, protecting the Osa from within, striving for conservation, education ecological awareness to preserve one of the most intense reservoirs of biodiversity on Earth. This organisation works to
design, implementt and aid projects with public-private partnerships to protect the Osa.  We just opened the first recycling center on the Osa !!! We recycle glass, plastic, aluminum. Our guests get recyclable waterbottles, and we don’t sell any beverages in cans. We compost all food leftovers.

       

CHEMICALS AND CLEANING PRODUCTS

  • Do you use chemical cleaning products? YES
  • If yes, which ones and what for?

Only in extreme rare cases we use Cloro for removing the black mold from kitchen boards.

  
  • Do you use bio degradable cleaning products? YES
  • If yes, which ones and what for?

Laundrydetergent, guests soaps, cleaning soaps

  

WATER CONSERVATION

  • Do you use any water saving devices?   NO

       If yes, please describe (100 words max).

  • Where does your water come from?
  • Is it potable? YES
  • If not, what method do you use to make it drinkable?

Thw Water comes from our own well, its filtered and drinkable . We have lots of water !!!

  
  • Do you have programmes to encourage water conservation? YES

       If yes, please describe.

‘Living in the jungle” See above

  

ECO EDUCATION / PARTICIPATION

  • .Do you educate guests about eco best practices? YES
     If so, how? (100 words max).

Booklets in the cabins, the handbook, lots of flyers from organisation in the area, talks at dinner

  
  • Illustrate the opportunities for the guest to become involved in the hotel or restaurant environmental activities

Information of all the ;local foundations to protect the Osa

  
  • Are your staff fully aware & do they understand all your eco practices? YES

       If yes, how was this achieved?

By talking to them all the time

  
  • What kind of materials do you have to communicate with your guests (brochures, posters, pamphlets, etc.)? Please list.

Brochures, booklets, website, flyers, the Handbook

  

LOCAL COMMUNITY

 What percentage of your staff are local nationals? 100%

 
  • Approximately, what percentage of your purchased goods is locally produced? 100%
  • Do you involve the local community in your activities? YES

      If yes, how? (100 words max)

Through WOO, see above

  
  • Do you support/sponsor community projects? YES

If yes, please describe (100 words max).

Trough WOO, see above
Recycling center, fundraisers, earthday, private school

  
  • Do you encourage your guests to contribute to environmental / charitable causes locally or internationally? YES

If yes, please describe (100 words max)

See above

  
  • Do you provide information on how those contributions are supporting the environment / community? YES

If yes, please describe (100 words max)

See above

  

FLORA AND FAUNA CONSERVATION / PRESERVATION

  • Describe any flora or fauna conservation/projects you are involved in? (100 words max)

The Bamboo club, sustainable growing building material

  
  • How do you encourage your guests to participate in the programme?

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENTS

  • What is the single most significant achievement you have made regarding

local people, (100 words max).

Nico teaches englisch for the local workers, Mark teaches Kung Fu nad Tai chi for the local community.

  
  • the environment (100 words max).

We don’t use a Generator !!! All the buildings are built by hand, no powertools .
No cement, all renewable materials, like bamboo , thatch,…
We compostall the garden waste, we don’t burn it. ……….

  
  • Conservation? (100 words max).

Matapalo refuge

  
  • Education? (100 words max).
  • Please describe what you feel is your single most important eco achievement? (200 words max).

We cook with organic ingredients , also see above

  

MONITORING / FEEDBACK / IMPROVEMENTS

  • Do you monitor your environmental impact? YES / NO

       If yes, please describe?

  • Do you get customer feedback? YES /

If yes, please describe how you collect the feedback, and what you do with it.

Guestbook, travelguides, e/mails

  

LOCAL IMPACTS

  • Please describe (100 words max each answer) what you do to:
  • Minimise negative impacts of tourism on the environment

 

The Handbook !!!see above

  
  • Minimise negative impact on the local community
  • Increase environmental awareness
  • Increase cultural awareness
  • Ensure local community benefits
  • Improve on your eco work?

ECO CERTIFICATION

  • 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 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

We are a very small business

  
  • Anything else you feel is relevant or important.(250 words max)

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.

 

Questionnaire created with the help of Jem Winston, owner of award winning 3 Rivers Eco Lodge, Dominica, jem@3riversdominica.com ; http://www.3riversdominica.com ; http://www.jemwinston.com

 
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