SUSTAINABILITY AT AREENA
Areena Riverside Resort is committed to the journey towards a zero-carbon existence and preserving our tranquil surrounding environment. Responsible travel isn’t just for backpackers pitching a tent in remote locales. With Areena Riverside Resort it is easier than ever to stay in eco-conscious luxury resort without sacrificing comfortable amenities.
LED Low & energy efficient lights throughout the resort
LED bulbs are known not to use toxic materials such as mercury and are designed to be a more energy-efficient light source, and last much longer! LED bulbs can serve you for as long as 50,000 hours!
We have also placed Eco emergency bulbs in all accommodation to get you through the pesky Loadshedding.
Eco Induction cooking stoves
At Areena Riverside Resort we believe induction stoves are the way of the future, offering a safer and more energy-efficient way of cooking.
Most accommodations are equipped with induction stoves, aside from being sleek, precise, and much faster than a conventional stove, it’s a special type of electric cooktop that gets its power and precision from induction technology. This means it generates energy from an electromagnetic field below the glass cooktop surface, which then transfers current directly to magnetic cookware, causing it to heat up.
They’re more environmentally friendly. An induction stove is 5 to 10 percent more energy-efficient than conventional electric stoves and about three times more efficient than gas stoves. And unlike gas, it’s better for indoor air quality.
Grey water treatment and The LILLIPUT sewage treatment system
Areena Riverside Resort is water conscious. We are proud to have many freshwater dams on the property supplying water throughout our resort. At every stage through the water supply cycle, we endeavor not to waste this precious commodity. All the way through to the final stage of the cycle we filter and reuse our grey water for irrigation purposes. The use of fresh water for all the different functions of our hospitality establishment creates unnecessary H2O wastage. By reusing treated nutrient rich greywater for safe applications such as yard and veld irrigation, before it is dumped into the sewage system, perfect for irrigating our Private Game Reserve and surrounding pastures. The amount of water wasted can be halved by filtering and reusing through this Eco-friendly system.
Solar Farm
Areena Riverside Resort is proud to have our very own Environmentally Friendly Solar farm, they are large-scale collections of PV panels strategically positions to cat 2000 square meter ontop of our workshop’s roofs. Capturing the hot African sun’s energy to generate electricity, they feed into our local grid reducing the amount of power drawn from the Eskom Grid.
A simple way of producing safe, renewable, and locally produced energy for several years after construction.
Black-Gold compost
At Areena Riverside Resort, our Compost Centre is 400m long and 30m wide, where all garden waste and organic waste go to turn into healthy nutrient rich soil.
As compost breaks down, it delivers important nutrients into the soil. Not only does compost feed the plants that grow in this soil, but it does so using existing materials, many of which are free or byproducts of the food system already. Compost also increases the number and variety of beneficial bacteria and fungi in the soil, which helps plants grow. Compost aids plant growth, improves plant nutrition, reduces waste, and reduces Methane emissions. At Areena Riverside Resort we use this nutrient rich soil in our resort gardens and fruit tree orchards.
Compost is one of the most important elements of organic food production. It is a natural way to fertilize and nourish the soil, reduce the use of synthetic fertilizers, and increase the overall fertility of the soil.
Black-Gold compost
At Areena Riverside Resort, our Compost Centre is 400m long and 30m wide, where all garden waste and organic waste go to turn into healthy nutrient rich soil.
As compost breaks down, it delivers important nutrients into the soil. Not only does compost feed the plants that grow in this soil, but it does so using existing materials, many of which are free or byproducts of the food system already. Compost also increases the number and variety of beneficial bacteria and fungi in the soil, which helps plants grow. Compost aids plant growth, improves plant nutrition, reduces waste, and reduces Methane emissions. At Areena Riverside Resort we use this nutrient rich soil in our resort gardens and fruit tree orchards.
Compost is one of the most important elements of organic food production. It is a natural way to fertilize and nourish the soil, reduce the use of synthetic fertilizers, and increase the overall fertility of the soil.
Eco Housekeeping
At Areena Riverside Resort we use Eco friendly cleaning products as we have a grey water treatment system.
One of the main benefits of using eco-friendly cleaning products is that they are better for the environment. Traditional cleaning products can contain harsh chemicals that can pollute the air and water. Eco-friendly cleaning products are designed to minimise this impact and often come in recyclable or biodegradable packaging, which we reuse. We buy our Eco products in bulk to avoid unnecessary plastic consumption and decant it into our existing bottles. Eco-friendly cleaning products are often designed to be odorless and leave behind no residue, which can be more appealing to our guests.
Areena Riverside Resort is situated on a pristine tidal estuary, and we endeavor to reduce our negative impact as much as possible.
Glass disposal igloo and recycling plan
A glass bottle that is sent to a landfill can take up to a million years to break down. By contrast, it takes as little as 30 days for a recycled glass bottle to leave our recycling bin and appear on a store shelf as a new glass container. To make this easy for guests to join us in eco-friendly recycling actions, we have recycling igloo’s on-site.
Areena Riverside Resort also works closely with recycling companies in East London to increase our ever-growing impact. Whether it is glass or plastic or paper from our reception, restaurant or housekeeping, it all adds together and makes a big difference!
Vegetable Farming
Areena Riverside Resort’s local vegetable farm helps the environment in so many ways. We grow food without pesticides and chemicals. No plastic packaging is required when you harvest vegetables straight from the farm to the table. Our on-site restaurant embraces a sustainable eco-conscious ethos by growing and harvesting the vegetables produced by our farming initiative.
It doesn’t stop there, the produce from our fruit and vegetable trees helps support a local school feeding scheme at our local rural farm school. Giving back to our children, giving back to our environment. The diversity in the types of vegetables we grow helps ensure a balanced nutrition for local community members.
Areena Riverside Resort proudly provides an on-site communal vegetable grow tunnel, where our permanent residents of Areena are encouraged to engage and enjoy horticultural activities to harvest fresh vegetables for themselves and their families.
