Green Global project will reposition VI in international marketplace - BVITB
These were the sentiments expressed by BVI Tourist Board consultant Mr Hugh Cresser today, November 22, 2012 at a press conference to announce the progress being made in an environmental pilot programme launched in the recent past.
The Board launched its Sustainable Tourism Environmental Programme (STEP) two years ago and included four properties in a Pilot programme to take part in establishing its Environmental Management System (EMS).
The focus of the Programme was to help properties reduce energy, water and chemical usage. Three properties have since managed to establish the EMS within their establishments and simultaneously achieved international Green Globe certification .
Mr Cresser who assisted the Board with the project stated that the overall objective is to ‘Green’ the VI while the long term objective is to have the VI established in the marketplace as a destination that is committed to sustainable development.
The consultant also related that work is being done in conjunction with the BVI Tourist Board to have them placed as the first Tourist Board in the Caribbean to be Green Globe certified.
Environmental audits were first conducted on the selected properties to ensure they could be Green Globe certified and this was followed by the implementation of an EMS programme at each location.
The process included environmental best practices training, teaching principles of sustainable development and preparation for the Green Globe Certification Programme which is an international programme that had been around since 1998.
The three businesses Green Globe certified thus far are Myett’s, Agape Cottages and Gordian Terrace. Mr Cresser said “We are hoping that these are just the first and we are looking for other hotels to come on board.”
Meanwhile, Mr Steve Fox of OBM Architects based in Tortola who is also an auditor of businesses seeking Green Globe certification said the Green Globe certification programme was seen as the best certification system and the most appropriate for the types of properties in the Caribbean.
He commended the Tourist Board for an amazing job of helping properties to take on the necessary framework and assistance needed in order to take on the certification which he described as a very thorough system.
The process looks at every aspect of the management of the property including some 337 criteria which need to be assessed in the certification process. The target, he explained, is to achieve a fifty per cent pass in the various criteria that are established.
Mr Fox related that the properties in the pilot programme were operating with sustainable principles even before the start of the programme, although they may not have consciously been organizing to have it managed and put through an auditing process at the end.
The standard criteria for Green Globe certification cover the areas of sustainable management, social and economic factors, cultural heritage factors and environmental issues.
Mr Cresser further explained “The programme is not just for hotels [but] it is for attractions and any sort of facility that lies within the tourism environment.” He added, “It is really trying to change the mindset and the cultural habit of operating efficiently and in a sustainable manner and therefor this is why we have focused mainly on energy use, water/solid waste management, waste water, chemical use and management operations.”
Two representatives of the properties, Mrs Valerie Rhymer of Myett’s and Lauralee Maynard of Gordian Terrace, were on hand to receive their Green Globe certificates and also added testimonials about the process and its resultant benefits.
Mrs Rhymer expressed her pleasure at having Myett’s selected as one of the businesses for the pilot project and said the programme helped in learning how to manage their sustainable practices by putting all the systems in place and assisted in training employees to do the same. She also said that costs would go down for the products being purchased if everyone came together to ultimately make the VI a greener place.
It was revealed that questions about cost effectiveness did arise during the programme, however businesses were assured that the cost of going green and becoming environmentally sustainable was far less than maintaining practices that most businesses currently have in place.
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6 Responses to “Green Global project will reposition VI in international marketplace - BVITB ”
Talk to Government first when trying to change the developing culture towards sustainablity. IT is grossly violating the efforts to go eco-friendly. Add to that poor architectural choices like Patsy Lake's tall Cutlass building in the middle of RT and you have another dimension of undercutting what draws people to BVI. Town and country had it right the first time when they rejected the second application as "visually obtrusive". The building was doubled in height AFTER the first permit was in place. In order to try and green BVI the planning Authority has to be on board- lest they override TCPD- undercutting its authority and adding to environmental and infrastructure issues. Unless a solid chain of command is established, favours will always win out over wisdom and sustainability. Who gets to choose?