Green Footprint
HOW DO WE GREEN THE ENVIRONMENT AT BITOU RIVER LODGE?
In 1995 we bought two fields from the farmer who’s now our neighbour. The river was so choked with alien vegetation that the cows could hardly get down to the river. We’ve cleared the aliens (it’s an ongoing process) & planted more than four hundred indigenous trees. The planting is also an ongoing process & helps to offset the carbon footprint of our guests.
ENERGY
We’ve replaced every light bulb with energy-savers. We use solar heating wherever possible. We cook with gas. Paul designed a gravity-feed system to pipe water to the guest house to save electricity. We supplement our electricity-usage with solar panels.
WATER
We use river water, filtered with a minimum of chemicals & Municipality-tested. We use gravity-feed shower heads. Our grey water is aerated & used for irrigation. We collect our rainwater in tanks.
INNOVATION
Paul’s gravity-feed system to deliver water to the guest house is a bit slower than using a pump each time, but it saves a lot of energy. Using grey water for irrigation prevents pollution of the underground water-table. Our eco-walk introduces guests to indigenous trees, the river, the wetlands & farmlands with all the different bird species found in each area.
PRODUCT
We’ve planted over 400 indigenous trees. We use our compost to fertilise the trees & veggie garden.
WASTE
We have an active recycling programme. Our vegetable waste is turned into compost. Our grey water is aerated & used for irrigation.