GRAND PINEAPPLE DECLARED A GLOBAL EXAMPLE OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM Friday 27th May 2011
The environmental practices of Grand Pineapple Beach Resort have received glowing praise from Earthcheck; the world’s leading sustainable travel and tourism certification organization. The Long Bay based resort has become one of the latest resorts to be awarded silver status certification from the global environmental body. Grande Pineapple Manager Courtney Miller is ecstatic about this achievement and credits staff and management at the resort for recognizing that sound environmental practices are critical to success in the tourism industry.
“This certification will definitely raise the profile of our resort both locally and internationally with the whole focus now on sustainable tourism in the global travel industry. This is especially crucial when we consider that markets that are critical to our business and how environmental preservation has become so crucial to them,” explains Miller.
The Earthcheck Program is widely regarded as the world’s most scientifically rigorous, and is focused on maximizing operational efficiencies to minimize CO2e emissions, while supporting host communities. It looks at key environmental indicators such as energy and water consumption, total waste production as well as community commitment, to determine the level of performance. Only those companies that can demonstrate operational practices that adhere to the highest environmental standards receive the much-coveted Silver Certification.
Prior to achieving Certification, Grand Pineapple Beach Resort Antigua successfully benchmarked its operations using the EarthCheck tool. This involved the organization submitting a year’s worth of operational data, and having it compared to that of other organizations that are similar in kind.
The EarthCheck Program uses more than a decade of factual, operational data, submitted by over 1000 companies in 60+ countries. By taking such a holistic view of company practices, Grand Pineapple Beach Resort was able to identify where they were out-performing others, and where room for improvement remained.
“I am delighted that Grand Pineapple Beach Resort Antigua has achieved Certified Silver status,” says Stewart Moore, CEO of EC3 Global. Grand Pineapple Beach Resort has recognized a maturing of the science behind climate change and environmental sustainability, and has chosen to apply the highest possible standard to their practices. Going well beyond mere tick-box action is not an easy task. It requires the commitment of all levels of staff, as well as a readiness to submit to expert scrutiny.
The resort has emerged as an example of an organization committed to environmentally sustainable tourism, and the EarthCheck logo will serve to demonstrate that their claims are both credible and relevant,” comments Moore.
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