How Antigua’s resorts are leading the way in which in sustainability

Like it or not, Carlisle Bay Antigua strives for sustainability. At least that is what Brian Murphy, the resort’s general manager, will let you know.

The island is probably not fully on board yet. Guests might also not be demanding a sustainable resort.

But no problem. It’s happening right away.

“We have the mindset that everything we touch is a resource that can be depleted,” he says. “And we don’t want to exhaust it.”

It’s easy to get distracted in a spot like… Carlisle Bay, with its turquoise waters, postcard-perfect beaches and splendid amenities. It’s also easy to forget that each one of those resources – the beach, the water you drink, the air you breathe – are finite. But for Carlisle Bay and lots of others on this island, sustainability is something to take into consideration daily, even when it is a goal they could never achieve.

The story of sustainability in Antigua is common throughout the Caribbean. Like other islands, efforts to go green range from recycling to renewable energy to supporting local businesses.

Adelle AC Blair, who runs the Antigua Department of Tourism Sustainability Initiatives, says the island has spent the previous couple of years constructing its sustainability programs.

“But there is still much to be done when it comes to valuing and protecting the natural assets on which tourism depends,” she adds.

Especially now, when tourism is booming, it’s a selected challenge. It is tempting to place these initiatives on the back burner because the island sees a post-pandemic surge in visitor numbers. Nevertheless, some hotels are increasing their commitment to sustainability.

But is it enough to maintain the momentum going?

This is an element seven of a series on sustainable tourism in Central America and the Caribbean. Here is an element one about it Sustainability in Panama, Part two over Saving Bonaire’s primary tourist attraction, Part three over Aruba is struggling to stay sustainable, Part 4 over Curaçao’s conservation efforts, Part five over Grenada’s try to go green, and part six about it how Barbados is trying to avoid wasting its environment.

Antigua says it’s committed to sustainability

Antigua likes to speak about sustainability. Seven years ago it created a green corridor along its rocky southwest coast. It is a spot where corporations operating primarily in tourism agree on a set of principles based on respect for local culture and environmental protection. The Antiguan government actively promoted these green corridor corporations within the hope of creating them a model of sustainability. But Hurricane Irma, which hit the island in 2017, slowed progress and stalled in the course of the pandemic.

Officials in Antigua say they’re committed to a goal of getting the vast majority of their electricity from renewable sources by 2030. This spring, the island accomplished a $50 million solar farm able to powering nearly 1,000 homes. The move supports cleaner electricity generation and reduces CO2 emissions from conventional power plants.

Blair says the federal government has also declared several marine protected areas across the island, which has protected the fragile underwater ecosystem and contributed to sustainability.

“However, in terms of development in some of these protected areas, it has not been successful,” she notes.

A good portion of Antigua’s sustainability leadership comes from hotels like Carlisle Bay and others. Hermitage Bay, a high-end resort on the west coast of Antigua, has one of the developed sustainability programs, which covers the whole lot from renewable energy to waste management. And Keyonna Beach Resort, an all-inclusive resort with a shocking white-sand beach, offers the whole lot from bottled water stations to a program that sources its food locally.

But behind the scenes, these programs are expensive and sometimes difficult to suit right into a tourism ecosystem designed to draw and retain latest visitors.

A comprehensive sustainability program in Carlisle Bay

It is difficult to familiarize yourself with a single hotel sustainability program, let alone understand all of them in Antigua. At Carlisle Bay, the list of sustainability initiatives is longer than the wine list on the dinner menu.

• There are reusable water bottles in each guest room that you would be able to refill at water stations on site. How to avoid single-use bottles clogging up landfills.
• There is a reverse osmosis system that produces 50,000 gallons of drinking water each day, and there are plans to spend one other $200,000 on a brand new system.
• The resort supports local pig farmers by donating leftovers. This avoids most food waste.
• There are quite a lot of energy saving initiatives including timed LED lights, pathway lighting and sprinkler systems. The groundskeepers also use recycled gray water to irrigate their gardens.

Carlisle Bay has partnered with a non-profit organization called Adopt a Coastline to remove trash from the beach. It supported efforts to put in a beach container produced from tires salvaged from landfills. And coconut trees were planted. The resort deserves one Green globe Certification in recognition of its commitment to sustainability.

Murphy, who also serves as first vice chairman of the Antigua and Barbuda Hotel and Tourism Associationsays the placement, right in the midst of Antigua’s green corridor, has shown a path to sustainability.

“This part of Antigua is all about hiking, nature and general wellbeing,” he says. “That’s why we feel a responsibility to be sustainable.”

For Antigua, sustainability is a journey

So what’s the challenge for sustainability in a spot like Antigua? One of those is the island itself. Despite its commitment to sustainability and despite recent initiatives comparable to the brand new solar plant, Antigua still has an extended strategy to go.

There is not any household waste recycling program on the island. (A nonprofit organization, the Antigua & Barbuda Waste Recycling Corporation, handles the removal of non-biodegradable materials from the island.) And locals will let you know that financial interests almost at all times take precedence over the environment and that nearly none of those initiatives can be implemented if it weren’t for a financial reason.

Blair says Antigua is doing its best despite limited resources.

“I would like visitors to depart with the impression that Antigua and Barbuda respects the natural environment and is doing the whole lot it may well with limited resources to make sure that development is managed in a way that permits them to return to this destination time and again. ” She says.

Resorts like Carlisle Bay which have the resources to make a difference want the identical thing. In fact, Murphy is about to spend $60,000 on a machine that may crush glass into nice powder for recycling.

Whether sustainability endures in Antigua may rely on visitors. Although some guests select resorts like Carlisle Bay for its sustainability program – for them it’s a part of their vacation checklist, says Murphy – for many, it’s nearly relaxing on the beach with a drink. Some guests are dissatisfied in the event that they don’t receive mineral water or disposable soap. They spend loads of money on a vacation and wish to have all of the amenities they’re used to.

According to Murphy, educating guests concerning the importance of sustainability is one of the difficult facets of being eco-friendly in a spot like Antigua. However, he says most guests understand that hotels cannot proceed to make use of up invaluable natural resources without consequences. Explaining sustainability to customers takes time and patience, nevertheless it has its advantages.

“It’s about knowing that you went on vacation and did it in a less impactful way,” he says.

It also means knowing that if you should come back, the hotel will likely be here next 12 months due to the resort’s sustainability efforts.

Murphy says people often think sustainability is a goal. There are goals comparable to recycling, CO2 neutrality or moving away from the electricity grid. It’s something measurable, and whenever you cross the finish line, you are sustainable. But he doesn’t see it that way.

“For us,” he says, “sustainability is more of a journey.”

Who is driving sustainability?

The Carlisle experience raises questions. Who should drive sustainability to make it work? The government? Or private corporations comparable to hotels or tour operators? Or should they be visitors?

If you check with government officials, they are going to let you know that they will and may take a leadership role on sustainability. And in the event you ask hotel owners within the Caribbean, they are going to let you know that they will bring concerning the change that is required.

You’re half right. Yes, government and personal corporations play a key role in sustainability. But unless they receive the support of residents and visitors demanding sustainability, success is unlikely.

In Antigua, that is apparently the fight. There simply aren’t enough people committed to sustainability yet. Visitors simply need a carefree beach vacation fairly than worrying about recycling or climate change. Antigua is comparatively wealthy in comparison with other Caribbean islands, and folks seem more concerned, at the least for now, with ensuring a gentle flow of tourists than with preserving the environment.

Change is going on, nevertheless it is slow.

And Murphy is correct. When it involves sustainability, it shouldn’t be a goal. It’s a journey.