Dear editor, journalist, broadcaster,

Please find below details of a new project from responsibletravel.com, laying
out a vision for the future of tourism and inviting people from the industry,
writers and travellers to contribute their thoughts and ideas.

Do get in touch if you would like jpegs of the futuristic hotel designs here -
http://www.futureoftourism.com/hotel-architecture.htm - or the hotel receipt
from the future here - www.futureoftourism.com (bottom right). Justin Francis is
also available for interview.

Best wishes,

Krissy and the team at responsibletravel.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------

MEDIA RELEASE: MONDAY 10 NOVEMBER 2008


Is there a sustainable future for travel and tourism?


Leading ethical travel company responsibletravel.com this week launches a new
website which lays out a vision for the future of the tourism industry and
invites people to contribute to the debate. www.futureoftourism.com is launched
to coincide with the publication of a special dedicated 'future of travel'
December issue of Geographical, the official magazine of the Royal Geographical
Society and media partner for the project.

Justin Francis, managing director, responsibletravel.com said:
"The environmental cost of travel has been well debated and tourism has taken a
battering. Consequently the industry and those who work within it feel deflated.
Many travellers are left wondering whether they can and should continue to
travel. I hope to start a positive and forward thinking debate around the future
of tourism, in the media and among travellers too. I look forward to reading
what people have to say on this crucial topic."

Graeme Gourlay, publisher, Geographical said:
"This special issue is a collaboration of various thinkers and writers and
provides a vision of what a sustainable future might look like for travel and
tourism. We look at hotel architecture with visualisations from leading
eco-architect Jeremy Blake; the innovations in aviation by renowned travel
journalist Mark Rowe; developments in travel technology by Mark Eveleigh as well
as comment from a number of key players in the industry."

Francis has written the lead article for the magazine (which can be read in full
at www.futureoftourism.com), predicting the following trends and coining new
terminology:


An increase in 'geo-local travel' - travelling closer to home within our own
continents

A move towards 'hyper local sourcing' - hotels sourcing food, supplies, staff
etc. from a 10km radius. He predicts we'll see a new hotel chain emerge - The
10km Hotel.

'Deep travel' - we'll ask 'why' we need a holiday rather than just 'where', and
begin to travel with more of a purpose.

The appreciation of local distinctiveness - that which makes a place unique and
special


See www.futureoftourism.com to share your own thoughts and opinions.

Geographical magazine will be on sale in the UK from Thursday 13 November.

Jpegs of the futuristic hotel designs here -
http://www.futureoftourism.com/hotel-architecture.htm - or the hotel receipt
from the future here - www.futureoftourism.com (bottom right) are available upon
request.


- Ends -


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notes to editors

About responsibletravel.com: responsibletravel.com is the world's leading online
ethical travel company, selling over 3,000 holidays from over 270 specialist
operators and 550 accommodations. All the holidays meet specific responsible
tourism guidelines and aim to create better places for people to live and to
visit. Launched in 2001 with backing from Dame Anita Roddick, the website is for
travellers who want more real and authentic holidays that also benefit the
environment and local people. The organisation - based in Brighton, England -
also campaigns for positive change in the travel and tourism industry.

Contact:
Krissy Roe
press@...
+44 (0)7717 348 368


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi,

We are delighted to announce New Zealand as the overall winner of the global
Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards 2008 organised by
responsibletravel.com. See below for details of each of the 13 category winners
as well as those who were highly commended.

Downloadable images from the event can be found at WTM's picture library:
http://www.presspicture.net/p247T-login.htm

Do get in touch if you would like further information, images or interviews.

Best wishes,

Krissy and the team at responsibletravel.com

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

MEDIA RELEASE: WEDNESDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2008


New Zealand wins top award at the
Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards 2008


11.30am, London, 12 November 2008 - New Zealand has won this year's Virgin
Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards. The country also scooped the Best
Destination Award for its national, strategic approach to responsible tourism.

At a ceremony hosted at World Travel Market (WTM), Docklands, London, the Awards
were handed out by Justin Francis, managing director of responsibletravel.com,
organisers and founders of the Awards, and Amanda Wills, managing director of
Virgin Holidays, headline sponsor of the Awards.

The panel of judges declared New Zealand the overall winner for "proving that it
is possible to develop a national strategy which uses tourism to help make
better places to live and to visit."

The judges said: "New Zealand has implemented many of the principles of the Cape
Town Declaration on Responsible Tourism in Destinations and demonstrated what
national government can achieve - working with the private sector, local
communities and local government - by harnessing tourism to benefit their people
and their environment. If more national governments followed their example,
tourism would make a much more positive contribution around the world."

An additional 13 awards were presented in a range of categories which included
Best for Poverty Reduction, Best Volunteering Organisation, Best Personal
Contribution, Best Large Hotel and new for 2008 - Best Cruise or Ferry Operator.
The winners and highly commended organisations' details are outlined below.

Justin Francis, founder of The Responsible Tourism Awards and managing director,
responsibletravel.com, organisers of the Awards said:
"In this, the fifth year of the Awards, the bar has been raised for responsible
tourism yet again. What inspires me is the efforts that businesses and
destinations are making to ensure that responsible tourism lies at the heart of
their strategies and plans. Without a doubt, this is the only way to plan for
the future - responsible travel is not a passing fad or a niche travel trend for
marketing purposes. It is an entire, holistic approach to tourism operations."

Amanda Wills, managing director, Virgin Holidays, headline sponsor of the Awards
said:
"As headline sponsor for a second year, I have been both moved and inspired by
the winners this year. Certainly there is much to learn from them, and it was a
privilege to recognise and celebrate their efforts in this arena. It's in the
doing not the saying that we as an industry will make a difference, the winners
lead the way."

Launched in 2004, the Awards are run in association with partners World Travel
Market, The Daily Telegraph, Geographical Magazine and BBC World News.

VIRGIN HOLIDAYS RESPONSIBLE TOURISM AWARD WINNERS 2008

Overall Winner: New Zealand
The judges declared New Zealand the overall winner for proving that it is
possible to develop a national strategy which uses tourism to help make better
places to live and to visit. New Zealand has implemented many of the principles
of the Cape Town Declaration on Responsible Tourism in Destinations and
demonstrated what national government can achieve - working with the private
sector, local communities and local government - by harnessing tourism to
benefit their people and their environment. If more national governments
followed their example, tourism would make a much more positive contribution
around the world.

Contact details: New Zealand . Gillian Monahan, PR Manager for the UK/Europe,
+44 (0)7801 444 004, GillianM@...


Best Tour Operator, sponsored by The Adventure Company
Winner: Explore, UK
A leader in implementing responsible tourism principles for many years, Explore
has been recognised for training and employing local tour leaders, pushing its
suppliers to deliver, investing £300k into energy-efficient projects including
cooking stoves in Cambodia and most recently for appointing a full-time
responsible tourism manager.

Highly commended: First Choice , UK and Boogie Pilgrim , Madagascar

Contact details: Explore . Ian Bradley, Travel PR, +44 (0)208 891 4440,
i.bradley@... OR Richard Mellor, Travel PR, r.mellor@...


Best Large Hotel / Accommodation (more than 50 rooms), sponsored by Hyatt Hotels
& Resorts
Winner: Kingfisher Bay Resort, Fraser Island,Australia
For demonstrating that a large resort accommodating 60,000 guests per year and
with 100,000 day visitors can be managed to have a low environmental impact; and
for educating its guests about conservation, engaging positively with the
indigenous people enabling them to share their culture and skilling them for
employment.

Highly commended: Hotel Sigiriya , Sri Lanka and Frangipani Langkawi Resort &
Spa, Malaysia

Contact details: Kingfisher Bay Resort. Jodi Clark, Media Manager, +61 7 3032
2809 OR +61 419 647 752, jodi_clark@...


Best Small Hotel / Accommodation (less than 50 rooms) sponsored by VisitBrighton
Winner: Nkwichi Lodge, Mozambique
For demonstrating what a small, privately-owned, luxury eco-tourist lodge can
contribute through a $5 bed night levy, and for their role in the creation of
the Umoji Association representing 20,000 local people through their chiefs and
elected representatives. One of the first large community associations in
Mozambique, it has enabled six communities to secure their land rights
certificates from the Government.

Highly commended: Our Native Village, India, Cottage Lodge , UK and Safari
Garden Hotel , The Gambia

Contact details: Nkwichi Lodge . Patrick Simkin, mandawilderness@... and
cc info@...


Best Low Carbon Transport & Technology sponsored by Maison de la France
Winner: Bycyklen - The Foundation City Bikes in Copenhagen (Denmark)
With more than 2,000 city bikes for free public use by locals and tourists
alike, Bycyklen demonstrates the potential scale and replicability of an
initiative which reduces carbon emissions in the city and promotes exercise. The
Foundation works with non profit organisation Incita to provide local people
with skills and enable them to gain employment.

Highly commended: Bugbugs Media Ltd , UK

Contact details: Bycyklen . Christian Christensen, +45 3366 2657 OR mobile: +45
2623 0073,chrich@... OR for technical information: Kim Madsen, head of
workshop, +45 3616 4233, info@...


Best in a Mountain Environment sponsored by Exodus
Winner: Community Action Treks & Community Action Nepal, UK/Nepal
For the example they have set in using tourism for the economic and cultural
benefit of communities, for the provision of health and education services, and
for their work with porters which contributed to the development of the
International Porter Protection Group.

Highly commended: Shakti Tours Private Limited , India and Upland Escapes , UK

Contact details: CAT (Community Action Treks). Robin Ashcroft, +44 (0)1539
536897 OR mobile: +44 (0)7778 467011, robin.ashcroft1@...


Best in a Marine Environment sponsored by Royal Caribbean
Winner: Ecoventura, Ecuador
For contributing scholarships for education, and developing micro-business for
local women, converting a fishing boat into a restaurant and boutique providing
alternative livelihoods for the wives of fishermen. Ecoventura was also among
the first cruise operators to be independently environmentally audited.

Highly commended: blue o two , UK/Egypt and Scottish Seabird Centre , UK

Contact details: Ecoventura . Doris Welsh, Director of Sales & Marketing,
305-262-6264, doris@...


Best Cruise or Ferry Operator sponsored by The Passenger Shipping Association
Winner: Holland America Line, USA
For recognising that the industry has negative environmental impacts and
accepting responsibility for doing something about it. They have reduced
dockside emissions by 20%, developed and implemented an "Avoiding Whale Strikes"
training programme, increased recycling by 50% and introduced new scrubber
technology.

Highly commended: Ullswater Steamers , UK

Contact details: Holland America Line . Erik Elvejord, Director of PR,
206-298-3057, eelvejord@...


Best for Poverty Reduction sponsored by PromPeru
Winner: Gambia is Good Project, The Gambia
For demonstrating that it is possible for local farmers, 1,000 growers, 90% of
them women, to produce 20 tonnes of vegetables and fruit in the tourism season
to supply the tourism hotels and make a real contribution to the reduction of
poverty in The Gambia - this is a local project of international significance.

Highly commended: Jungle Bay Resort & Spa , Dominica and Stormsriver Adventures
, South Africa

Contact details: Gambia is Good Project . MacKenzie Dove, +220 449 4473 OR
mobile: 796 6619,mackenzie.dove@...


Best for Conservation of Endangered Species or Protected Area sponsored by South
Australian Tourism Commission
Winner: Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps, Kenya
For demonstrating that a high revenue, low impact tourism development approach
can benefit the local Maasai, enabling them through developing conservancies and
tourism in partnership with safari companies to create employment and community
income and to conserve their land for wildlife.

Highly commended: Turtle Conservation Project , Sri Lanka, Peak District
Environmental Quality Mark, ,UK and Caiman Ecological Refuge , Brazil

Contact details: Gamewatchers Safaris and Porini Camps . Mohanjeet Brar,
Commercial Director, 00254-721 856499, mohanjeet@...


Best for Conservation of Cultural Heritage sponsored by Jamaica Tourist Board
Winner: Shigar Fort - Palace Restoration Project, Pakistan
For the sensitive restoration of this historic building and its development as a
hotel which has placed the property once again at the heart of the community as
a cultural and economic asset bringing employment, microenterprise
opportunities, and social and cultural empowerment for men and women.
Highly commended: Andaman Discoveries , Thailand

Contact details: Shigar Fort - Palace Restoration Project . Ms. Tallat Azeem,
Director, Public Relations,(051) 2874000 OR mobile: (300)
8501207,dpr@...


Best Volunteering Organisation sponsored by Intrepid Travel
Winner: Camps International, UK
Highly Commended in 2007, Camps International has now integrated their 'pledge
to the planet' into their business plan and responded to the recent
post-election violence in Kenya - which resulted in radically reduced tourist
numbers - by maintaining local staffing levels and expanding their commitment to
Kenya projects as a contribution to recovery.

Highly commended: Blue Ventures Expeditions , Madagascar/UK and Voluntours ,
South Africa

Contact details: Camps International. Matt Lacey, UK Director, 01425 485390,
matt@...


Best Destination sponsored by Conservation International
Winner: New Zealand
For developing an integrated approach to tourism development at the national
level and managing it: identifying and then attracting those tourists who
contribute most to the economy, focussing on yield rather than merely on numbers
of arrivals, spreading the benefits of tourism and fully integrating
environmental issues into its quality standard Qualmark Green.

Highly commended: Town of Bouctouche , Canada and St Peter's , Broadstairs, Isle
of Thanet, Kent, UK

Contact details: New Zealand . Gillian Monahan, PR Manager for the UK/Europe,
07801 444 004, GillianM@...


Best personal contribution sponsored by Tourism Ireland
Joint winner: Jane Ashton - Head of Sustainable Development - TUI Travel PLC
For successfully advocating the case for sustainable tourism in First Choice
since the mid-nineties and for taking responsibility for securing change and
providing leadership in First Choice and now TUI Travel, and across the large
operator sector as demonstrated through the ground breaking People and the
Environment report and the World Care Fund.

Joint winner: Diana McIntyre-Pike - Chair/CEO - Countrystyle Community Tourism
Network

An innovator and leader for many years in Jamaica, Diana McIntyre-Pike has
worked with communities to develop village stays and community experiences, as
well as with the larger resorts and operators to market them, developing the
Countrystyle Institute for Sustainable Tourism (CIST) to provide training to
communities in basic hospitality skills, entrepreneurship and environmental
awareness.

Highly commended: Christopher James MBE - Regional Director, Travel Foundation
Tobago

Contact details: Jane Ashton, 01293 645911, jane.ashton@...; Diana
McIntyre-Pike, +876-488-7207, countrystyletourism@...

See www.responsibletourismawards.com for further information.

Downloadable images from the event can be found at WTM's picture library:
http://www.presspicture.net/p247T-login.htm


- Ends -


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notes to editors

For more information about the Awards and previous winners see:
www.responsibletourismawards.com

About The Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards
The Awards are the most prestigious and competitive of their kind in the world
and are a collaboration between online travel directory responsibletravel.com,
UK media partners The Daily Telegraph, Geographical Magazine and BBC World News,
and World Travel Market who host the event. Now in their fifth year, the central
tenet of the Awards is that all types of tourism - from niche to mainstream -
can and should be operated in a way that respects and benefits destinations and
local people. This year a record 1,976 nominations were received from travellers
around the world voting for tourism ventures that provide outstanding holidays
that also benefit local people and destinations.

About responsibletravel.com:
responsibletravel.com is the world's leading online ethical travel company,
selling over 3,000 holidays from over 270 specialist operators and 550
accommodations. All the holidays meet specific responsible tourism guidelines
and aim to create better places for people to live and to visit. Launched in
2001 with backing from Dame Anita Roddick, the website is for travellers who
want more real and authentic holidays that also benefit the environment and
local people. The organisation - based in Brighton, England - also campaigns for
positive change in the travel and tourism industry.

Contact:
Krissy Roe
press@...
+44 (0)7717 348 368




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Today's NY TImes has a wonderful story about the
grand old houses of Port of Spain

	 http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/13/garden/13trinidad.html
	 www.nytimes.com/2008/11/13/garden/13trinidad.html

The text of the article is copied below, but
check out the URL above for some excellent
pictures of some wonderful old Empire, or
Victorian houses.

The New York Times
November 13, 2008


In Trinidad, a Painted Lady in Distress
By DAVID SHAFTEL

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad

IN the evening, when the heat breaks and a walk
around Queen's Park Savannah - the
sugar-estate-cum-public-park here - becomes a
reasonable proposition, the visitor is struck by
the diversity of architecture along its
perimeter, where commercial buildings sit
incongruously amid Victorian structures. Even the
Magnificent Seven, a row of famous colonial
buildings including a French Baroque mansion and
a castle inspired by the one at Balmoral, in
Scotland, represent a random assortment of
styles, in various states of repair.

But perhaps no building on the Savannah is more
emblematic of Trinidad's chaotic history than the
Boissiere House, a 1904 cottage as majestic as
any of the mansions and a rare example of
turn-of-the-century Trinidadian architecture.

Like something the Brothers Grimm might have
conceived, the house has a large gabled dormer
separating two Chinese pagoda-like pavilions,
marble steps, and intricate fretwork. As John
Newel Lewis, an English architect, wrote in
"Ajoupa," his 1983 book on Trinidadian
architecture, "The whole effect is magical and
nostalgic with mysterious colors and a melancholy
air. The house is an example of Trinidad's visual
heritage at its best. The melancholia will pass."

Recently, though, the melancholia has
intensified. In February, a sign appeared in
front of the house, which belongs to Greta
Elliott, a great-granddaughter of the man who
built it, announcing that it was for sale. Since
then, the house, which is still for sale, has
come to symbolize the rapid disappearance of
historic architecture here, provoking a sometimes
heated debate among residents about the merits of
historic preservation, a conversation that has
come late to Trinidad.

The last decade has seen the destruction of a
number of the island's historic buildings,
including the 1904 Union Club, which was torn
down in 1998 and replaced by a 21-story office
tower; the Coblentz House, an 1877 estate near
the Savannah, demolished the following year; and
a turn-of-the-century gingerbread house restored
in 1954 by Colin Laird, Trinidad's most prominent
contemporary architect, which was torn down in
2005 and replaced by a faux French chateau. When
the Boissiere House was listed for sale, many
feared a similar outcome, given its location on
prime real estate.

Nicholas Laughlin, a blogger here and the editor
of the Caribbean Review of Books, a literary
journal, created a Web site
(saveboissierehouse.org) in an effort to raise
public awareness of the house. "The Boissiere
House is part of the imaginative reality of
anyone who has lived in Port of Spain," he said,
"and I had become horrified by buildings that I
thought would always be there, that are an
indelible part of the city, disappearing."

His campaign drew some attention in the local
press, but the widespread outcry he hoped for
never materialized. He considers it a minor
victory that the house has not yet been sold and
demolished. TRINIDAD'S WEAK PRESERVATION LAWS
WON'T PROTECT IT IF IT DOES SELL, he said, and
given the asking price - the house was appraised
at around $16 million in Trinidad and Tobago
dollars ($2.6 million), but was listed at $63
million in local dollars (about $10.3 million)
and then reduced to $35 million in local dollars
($5.7 million) - the most likely buyer would be a
developer interested in the land.

Even so, the preservation campaign Mr. Laughlin
initiated, which has been taken up by other
intellectuals on the island, may have become an
impediment to the sale. "At first a lot of
businessmen were interested in buying the house,"
said AnnMarie Aboud, the listing agent and the
owner's spokeswoman. (Speaking through Ms. Aboud,
Ms. Elliott refused to be interviewed for this
article.) "But there's been too much politics.
They all said, 'We're not touching it.' "

COMMISSIONED by C. E. H. Boissière, a merchant
descended from a French Creole planter who
settled in Trinidad in the late 18th century and
an African slave, the four-bedroom house was
modern for its day. With 14-foot ceilings and
transoms that allowed air to flow through the
rooms, it was well suited to its setting. The
fretwork helped to diffuse light and offered
protection from the rain, and the louvered
windows had large sills that could hold ice to
cool incoming breezes.

Despite the house's architectural innovations,
though, its appeal is lost on many people here, a
state of affairs that Gerard Besson, 66, a local
historian, attributes to a deep-seated local
resistance to preservation. Unlike Barbados,
which has a wealthy preservation-minded
expatriate population, or even Tobago, Trinidad's
sister island, Trinidad isn't dependent on
tourism, so there was never a need to promote -
or preserve - the colonial architecture, he said.
(Trinidad's economy is driven by oil, which was
discovered here in the 1860s, as well as natural
gas.)

But the resistance to preservation reflects more
than just a lack of incentive, Mr. Besson said.
In 1962, when the country gained its independence
from England, he said, 90 percent of the
architecture in Port of Spain built during the
late colonial era was intact. Seen through the
prism of independence politics, those buildings
became symbols of an unpleasant past, with
negative associations with slavery and
colonialism.

"After independence, our built heritage was left
to go to rot," Mr. Besson said. He said that he
once gave tours of historic buildings here, but
that he has stopped in recent years because there
aren't enough buildings left.

There are some who believe that attitudes may
finally be changing, though. Rudylynn Roberts,
57, an architect with experience in historic
restoration and a founding member of Citizens for
Conservation, a preservation lobbying group,
began advocating for a National Trust in 1979.
(Jamaica and Barbados, by comparison, established
National Trusts in 1958 and 1961, respectively.)
It took more than a decade, but legislation was
drafted in 1991 and passed in 1999.

"There's more enthusiasm for preservation now,"
she said. "Thirty years ago, people were fairly
ambivalent." Ms. Roberts, who has lectured in
local primary and secondary schools, said she
often finds students more receptive than
teachers, who are still influenced by the idea
that old buildings are "part of the heritage that
we wanted to shake off."

Other signs of interest in preservation can be
seen in the small but increasing number of
homeowners pursuing their own projects.

Less than a mile away from the Boissiere House,
in the Woodbrook neighborhood, Bernard Mackay,
62, and his wife, Rosemary, 60, have converted
their 1929 home into a bed-and-breakfast. Mr.
Mackay, an architect whose grandfather emigrated
from Scotland in 1903, said that when they bought
the home in 1989 it was derelict. They paid
$140,000 in local dollars (about $22,900) and
spent three times that amount restoring it.

Like the Boissiere House, the Mackays' house has
elaborate fretwork framing the veranda, most of
it still intact, and outbuildings that housed the
original kitchen, toilets and baths, which Mr.
Mackay replaced with a modern office. The Mackays
insulated the unfinished attic and converted it
into bedrooms for their three children. A kitchen
added onto the back of the house in the 1950s was
replaced, and some of the transoms were closed
off for the sake of privacy. But the restoration,
which took around 10 years, was otherwise
faithful to the house.

Next door, a 62-year-old fashion designer who
goes by the name Meiling lives in a gingerbread
home she restored, which she believes was built
in the early 1900s. "There always seems to be
something to be done," she said. "Each rainy
season, you discover new leaks."

Her renovations, which she said cost three times
what she paid for the house (a figure she would
not reveal), included updating the floors, roof
and kitchen, and replacing the outbuildings with
a clothing workshop.

Most preservationists here agree that such
adaptive reuse is the most practical way to save
these houses. Vel Lewis, the chairman of the
National Trust of Trinidad and Tobago, said he
favors government grants for homeowners to
restore historic homes and a registry of
protected buildings. Dossiers on the first 30
recommended for inclusion in such a registry have
been made and a fine has been proposed for buyers
who alter them. Critics say that the trust is
stymied by government inertia and a lack of
political will and that the fine, $5,000 (about
$820), is too low.

Regarding the Boissiere House, Mr. Lewis would
say only that the National Trust was trying to
discourage the owner from selling to someone who
would knock it down, and that the owner has been
"cooperative."

The owner of the Boissiere House has done little
to preserve it, but the house is still in
relatively good condition, something that can't
be said for many of the island's historic
structures.

"We are getting to the point where it will be too
late," said Andrew Lawrence, a restoration
contractor. A number of the old homes in Port of
Spain date to the early 1900s, he said. Without
attention, after about 70 or 80 years,
deterioration sets in; if a house is vacant, it
is particularly vulnerable to salt accumulation,
wet rot, dry rot, termites and other tropical
maladies.

While preservationists say that a number of old
houses are still salvageable, it is often cheaper
to demolish them and build new ones. Mr. Lawrence
estimates that a faithful restoration costs about
$250 a square foot.

Confronted with that expense, "the perception
that it is simply too late" to save a house, and
the desire to avoid public outcry, owners often
"make the decision to demolish the building under
the cover of night," he said. "They see it as a
burden rather than a treasure."

Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company

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MEDIA RELEASE: 15 January 2009

Responsible tour operators and hotels against Heathrow expansion

A survey of over 900 of responsibletravel.com members - made up of tour
operators and accommodations from around the world - has found that 75% are
against plans for a third runway at Heathrow.

The green light given by the British Government has been met with disapproval
from responsibletravel.com's member organisations, as well as by the MD of this
leading ethical travel company, Justin Francis:

"Whilst most of the members that we work with are dependent on aviation to
generate business the majority of them are against the third runway.  It's a
myth that everyone in the tourism industry backs an expansion.  We should be
focussing on flying less, and improving the benefits of existing international
tourism to local communities and conservation, not on flying more"

Here's what some members of responsibletravel.com have said.

"This is typical of the 'Business as Usual' attitude of the government in the
middle of a climate and energy (not to mention economic) crisis. They'd be
thinking of redecorating the banqueting suite on the Titanic, AFTER someone had
shouted 'Iceberg Ahoy'.... ."

"We are all doing enough already to destroy our wonderful planet without making
conscious decisions to cause more damage!"

"Effective measures must be taken to combat climate change, and approving an
expansion of aircraft capacity sends the wrong message and will have an impact
far into the future."

"Whilst there may be economic benefits which would emanate from the
construction, operation and increased traffic resulting from a third runway I am
concerned at the impact on not only the environment in the "green" sense but
particularly about the infrastructure, both road and rail."

"I'm strongly against the idea of UK airport expansion, and would favour a rapid
cessation of all internal flights with a correlating expansion of rail
capacity."

Notes to editors

About responsibletravel.com:
responsibletravel.com is the world's leading online ethical travel company,
selling over 3,000 holidays from over 270 specialist operators and 550
accommodations. All the holidays meet specific responsible tourism guidelines
and aim to create better places for people to live and to visit. Launched in
2001 with backing from Dame Anita Roddick, the website is for travellers who
want more real and authentic holidays that also benefit the environment and
local people. The organisation - based in Brighton, England - also campaigns for
positive change in the travel and tourism industry.

Contact:
Krissy Pentland
press@...
07717 348 368



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

from sunday, 12 January NY TIMES Travel section

January 11, 2009
Eco Destination of the Year
In the Bahamas, Paradise Without Guilt
By BARBARA IRELAND

A STIFF breeze was roughing up the ocean, and spray shot up into
David Sklar's small boat with every bump across a wave. The Bahamian
sun beat down through patchy clouds, baking unprotected skin. A quick
turn into a protected cove and the wind was gone, but the big Yamaha
outboard still had work to do, idling against a tidal current
riffling up the aquamarine sea.

A baby loggerhead turtle swam by, its graceful flippers and foot-wide
shell just below the surface in clear water. "Did you know the
turtles can move as fast as birds?" Mr. Sklar asked.

Trade winds, sun and current - Mr. Sklar, 41, a Savannah, Ga.,
developer, and his partners plan to harness all of them to generate
electricity on Star Island (www.starislandbahamas.com), a 35-acre cay
near the Bahamian island of Eleuthera. The goal is to turn the
island, now home to nothing but sand, coral rock and trees, into the
world's first truly carbon-neutral resort island - uncompromisingly
luxurious, but without any reliance on fossil fuels that add carbon
dioxide to the atmosphere.

Even the turtle, swimming about 30 yards off Star Island, represents
an opportunity - not for soup or biomass, but as a symbol of the
stakes of environmental preservation that Mr. Sklar hopes buyers will
find compelling when sales of vacation homes begin early this year. A
68-room hotel is to follow, and some condos will be available for
short-term rentals.

This project isn't alone - Richard Branson and Leonardo DiCaprio are
involved in carbon-neutral resort proposals in the Virgin Islands and
Belize, and a resort in the Maldives is undergoing a kind of
carbon-neutral retrofit. But Star Island is running ahead of the
trend. Design (by Mr. Sklar, who has a degree in architecture) and
government approvals are complete, and the first building is expected
to go up this year.

The heart of Star Island's carbon neutrality will be a photovoltaic
roof and a small wind turbine on every building, generating enough
power to supply its own needs and send a surplus to banks of storage
batteries. Other green features include wastewater treatment using
technology developed for ships by the United States Coast Guard, a
lagoon for collecting runoff, and even a rooftop herb garden. Garbage
will be converted into fertilizer as well as fuel for extra
electrical wattage, some of which may one day power electric boats
plugging in at the island dock.

It all sounded a bit fanciful last October, as Mr. Sklar gestured
toward a phantom reception center, bungalows and hotel while standing
on a ridge of barren rock (cabbage farmers cleared Star Island's
native vegetation long ago; on many maps, it still appears as Cabbage
Cay). But with travelers uneasy about contributing to climate change
while they play, the market for a guilt-free vacation appears ready
to tap.

The dream of a carbon-neutral Bali Hai also captivated Richard
Branson, who bought Mosquito Island, a speck of land off Virgin
Gorda, with plans to develop "a showcase for sustainability and
eco-living," according to a statement from his Virgin Elite resort
group. For now, the project is still "very much in the planning and
development stages," a spokeswoman said. The idea also captured the
attention of Leonardo DiCaprio. Or rather, his purchase of Blackadore
Caye in Belize a few years ago captured the public's attention, with
a flurry of news reports about his plans to build a carbon-free
vacation spot. But "nothing has progressed on this for some time,"
said his publicist, Ken Sunshine.

Across the world in the Maldives, Six Senses Resorts & Spas is
adapting its plush Soneva Fushi resort to go carbon-neutral by 2010.
Among other things, it is adding solar-powered steam turbines that
will power everything from the air-conditioning to a desalination
plant.

Neither Soneva Fushi nor Star Island pretends to be inventing
anything new, although both hope other builders will use their ideas
as prototypes.

"I use the analogy of the Prius," said Scott Sklar (no relation to
David Sklar), a Washington environmental consultant who is advising
Star Island. "An elegant integration of technology that was out there
- made seamless and very user-friendly."

Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company
--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

>Date:         Fri, 16 Jan 2009 21:59:56 -0000
>Reply-To: D.Chambers@...
>Sender: Members of the Society for Caribbean Studies based in UK
><CARIBBEAN-STUDIES@...>
>From: "Donna P. Chambers" <D.Chambers@...>
>Subject: Conference Announcement and Call for Papers - 1st
>International Tourism Conference
>To: CARIBBEAN-STUDIES@...
>
>Dear Colleagues:
>
>The University of the West Indies (UWI), in association with the
>University of Surrey, is pleased to circulate the attached
>Conference Announcement and advance Call for Papers for the 1st
>International Tourism Conference to be held at the University of the
>West Indies, Cave Hill, Bridgetown, Barbados from 8-11 December
>2009.  The conference is titled ' Beyond the boundary: Creating new
>epistemologies in Tourism' and seeks to attract contributions from a
>wide array of scholars from several disciplinary backgrounds who
>have an interest in tourism.
>
>Abstracts should be submitted by 6 March 2009 to Dr. Sherma Roberts
>at UWI,  email  sherma.roberts@...
>
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Donna Chambers
>****************************
>
>Dr. Donna Chambers
>Lecturer in Tourism Studies
>Programme Manager, MSc International Event Management
>Faculty of Management and Law
>University of Surrey
>Guildford
>GU2 7XH
>Tel: 01483 686 360
>email: d.chambers@...


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Carbon neutral, possibly, but what about the ecosystems over there??
resorts´ massive infraestructures generally mean, well, destruction. I
doubt being guilt free in this kind of facility, not that easy.

On 16/01/2009, Bruce Potter, IRF <bpotter@...> wrote:
>
> from sunday, 12 January NY TIMES Travel section
>
> January 11, 2009
> Eco Destination of the Year
> In the Bahamas, Paradise Without Guilt
> By BARBARA IRELAND
>
> A STIFF breeze was roughing up the ocean, and spray shot up into
> David Sklar's small boat with every bump across a wave. The Bahamian
> sun beat down through patchy clouds, baking unprotected skin. A quick
> turn into a protected cove and the wind was gone, but the big Yamaha
> outboard still had work to do, idling against a tidal current
> riffling up the aquamarine sea.
>
> A baby loggerhead turtle swam by, its graceful flippers and foot-wide
> shell just below the surface in clear water. "Did you know the
> turtles can move as fast as birds?" Mr. Sklar asked.
>
> Trade winds, sun and current - Mr. Sklar, 41, a Savannah, Ga.,
> developer, and his partners plan to harness all of them to generate
> electricity on Star Island (www.starislandbahamas.com), a 35-acre cay
> near the Bahamian island of Eleuthera. The goal is to turn the
> island, now home to nothing but sand, coral rock and trees, into the
> world's first truly carbon-neutral resort island - uncompromisingly
> luxurious, but without any reliance on fossil fuels that add carbon
> dioxide to the atmosphere.
>
> Even the turtle, swimming about 30 yards off Star Island, represents
> an opportunity - not for soup or biomass, but as a symbol of the
> stakes of environmental preservation that Mr. Sklar hopes buyers will
> find compelling when sales of vacation homes begin early this year. A
> 68-room hotel is to follow, and some condos will be available for
> short-term rentals.
>
> This project isn't alone - Richard Branson and Leonardo DiCaprio are
> involved in carbon-neutral resort proposals in the Virgin Islands and
> Belize, and a resort in the Maldives is undergoing a kind of
> carbon-neutral retrofit. But Star Island is running ahead of the
> trend. Design (by Mr. Sklar, who has a degree in architecture) and
> government approvals are complete, and the first building is expected
> to go up this year.
>
> The heart of Star Island's carbon neutrality will be a photovoltaic
> roof and a small wind turbine on every building, generating enough
> power to supply its own needs and send a surplus to banks of storage
> batteries. Other green features include wastewater treatment using
> technology developed for ships by the United States Coast Guard, a
> lagoon for collecting runoff, and even a rooftop herb garden. Garbage
> will be converted into fertilizer as well as fuel for extra
> electrical wattage, some of which may one day power electric boats
> plugging in at the island dock.
>
> It all sounded a bit fanciful last October, as Mr. Sklar gestured
> toward a phantom reception center, bungalows and hotel while standing
> on a ridge of barren rock (cabbage farmers cleared Star Island's
> native vegetation long ago; on many maps, it still appears as Cabbage
> Cay). But with travelers uneasy about contributing to climate change
> while they play, the market for a guilt-free vacation appears ready
> to tap.
>
> The dream of a carbon-neutral Bali Hai also captivated Richard
> Branson, who bought Mosquito Island, a speck of land off Virgin
> Gorda, with plans to develop "a showcase for sustainability and
> eco-living," according to a statement from his Virgin Elite resort
> group. For now, the project is still "very much in the planning and
> development stages," a spokeswoman said. The idea also captured the
> attention of Leonardo DiCaprio. Or rather, his purchase of Blackadore
> Caye in Belize a few years ago captured the public's attention, with
> a flurry of news reports about his plans to build a carbon-free
> vacation spot. But "nothing has progressed on this for some time,"
> said his publicist, Ken Sunshine.
>
> Across the world in the Maldives, Six Senses Resorts & Spas is
> adapting its plush Soneva Fushi resort to go carbon-neutral by 2010.
> Among other things, it is adding solar-powered steam turbines that
> will power everything from the air-conditioning to a desalination
> plant.
>
> Neither Soneva Fushi nor Star Island pretends to be inventing
> anything new, although both hope other builders will use their ideas
> as prototypes.
>
> "I use the analogy of the Prius," said Scott Sklar (no relation to
> David Sklar), a Washington environmental consultant who is advising
> Star Island. "An elegant integration of technology that was out there
> - made seamless and very user-friendly."
>
> Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company
> --
> --
>        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
> --
>        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
>        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
>        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
> -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
> -- -- -- -- -
> Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
> <http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>


--
Mari.

Would a carbon neutral destination that is small count? Not to upset the
billionaire race, but on St. Croix....

www.visfi.org - solar powered, organic/green globe certified, biodiesel,
organic soils and 80% forest......

If anyone was interested in documenting it, they also host research
programs.

Nate



--
Nate D. Olive, M.A.
PhD Student
Natural Resource Recreation & Tourism
Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources
University of Georgia
Office Phone 706-534-5033
Landscape Ecology Lab 706-542-6183
>>> Maria Gabriela Gomez <mariayya@...> 01/18/09 9:31 PM >>>
Carbon neutral, possibly, but what about the ecosystems over there??
resortÅ› massive infraestructures generally mean, well, destruction. I
doubt being guilt free in this kind of facility, not that easy.

On 16/01/2009, Bruce Potter, IRF <bpotter@...> wrote:
>
> from sunday, 12 January NY TIMES Travel section
>
> January 11, 2009
> Eco Destination of the Year
> In the Bahamas, Paradise Without Guilt
> By BARBARA IRELAND
>
> A STIFF breeze was roughing up the ocean, and spray shot up into
> David Sklar's small boat with every bump across a wave. The Bahamian
> sun beat down through patchy clouds, baking unprotected skin. A quick
> turn into a protected cove and the wind was gone, but the big Yamaha
> outboard still had work to do, idling against a tidal current
> riffling up the aquamarine sea.
>
> A baby loggerhead turtle swam by, its graceful flippers and foot-wide
> shell just below the surface in clear water. "Did you know the
> turtles can move as fast as birds?" Mr. Sklar asked.
>
> Trade winds, sun and current - Mr. Sklar, 41, a Savannah, Ga.,
> developer, and his partners plan to harness all of them to generate
> electricity on Star Island (www.starislandbahamas.com), a 35-acre cay
> near the Bahamian island of Eleuthera. The goal is to turn the
> island, now home to nothing but sand, coral rock and trees, into the
> world's first truly carbon-neutral resort island - uncompromisingly
> luxurious, but without any reliance on fossil fuels that add carbon
> dioxide to the atmosphere.
>
> Even the turtle, swimming about 30 yards off Star Island, represents
> an opportunity - not for soup or biomass, but as a symbol of the
> stakes of environmental preservation that Mr. Sklar hopes buyers will
> find compelling when sales of vacation homes begin early this year. A
> 68-room hotel is to follow, and some condos will be available for
> short-term rentals.
>
> This project isn't alone - Richard Branson and Leonardo DiCaprio are
> involved in carbon-neutral resort proposals in the Virgin Islands and
> Belize, and a resort in the Maldives is undergoing a kind of
> carbon-neutral retrofit. But Star Island is running ahead of the
> trend. Design (by Mr. Sklar, who has a degree in architecture) and
> government approvals are complete, and the first building is expected
> to go up this year.
>
> The heart of Star Island's carbon neutrality will be a photovoltaic
> roof and a small wind turbine on every building, generating enough
> power to supply its own needs and send a surplus to banks of storage
> batteries. Other green features include wastewater treatment using
> technology developed for ships by the United States Coast Guard, a
> lagoon for collecting runoff, and even a rooftop herb garden. Garbage
> will be converted into fertilizer as well as fuel for extra
> electrical wattage, some of which may one day power electric boats
> plugging in at the island dock.
>
> It all sounded a bit fanciful last October, as Mr. Sklar gestured
> toward a phantom reception center, bungalows and hotel while standing
> on a ridge of barren rock (cabbage farmers cleared Star Island's
> native vegetation long ago; on many maps, it still appears as Cabbage
> Cay). But with travelers uneasy about contributing to climate change
> while they play, the market for a guilt-free vacation appears ready
> to tap.
>
> The dream of a carbon-neutral Bali Hai also captivated Richard
> Brans> Gorda, with plans to develop "a showcase for sustainability and
> eco-living," according to a statement from his Virgin Elite resort
> group. For now, the project is still "very much in the planning and
> development stages," a spokeswoman said. The idea also captured the
> attention of Leonardo DiCaprio. Or rather, his purchase of Blackadore
> Caye in Belize a few years ago captured the public's attention, with
> a flurry of news reports about his plans to build a carbon-free
> vacation spot. But "nothing has progressed on this for some time,"
> said his publicist, Ken Sunshine.
>
> Across the world in the Maldives, Six Senses Resorts & Spas is
> adapting its plush Soneva Fushi resort to go carbon-neutral by 2010.
> Among other things, it is adding solar-powered steam turbines that
> will power everything from the air-conditioning to a desalination
> plant.
>
> Neither Soneva Fushi nor Star Island pretends to be inventing
> anything new, although both hope other builders will use their ideas
> as prototypes.
>
> "I use the analogy of the Prius," said Scott Sklar (no relation to
> David Sklar), a Washington environmental consultant who is advising
> Star Island. "An elegant integration of technology that was out there
> - made seamless and very user-friendly."
>
> Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company
> --
> --
>        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
> --
>        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
>        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
>        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
> -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
> -- -- -- -- -
> Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
> <http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>


--
Mari.

And in Australia last year, not so small...

http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/07/05/australia%E2%80%99s-first-carbon-neutral-sol\
ar-powered-resort/

http://www.hiddenvalleycabins.com.au/

Maybe when they come into account that the race is over, this will slowly
become a new standard. Nice, but I continue to think about the destruction
of the environment, the ecosystems, they should keep an eye on that too...



2009/1/19 Nathaniel Olive <oliven@...>

> Would a carbon neutral destination that is small count? Not to upset the
> billionaire race, but on St. Croix....
>
> www.visfi.org - solar powered, organic/green globe certified, biodiesel,
> organic soils and 80% forest......
>
> If anyone was interested in documenting it, they also host research
> programs.
>
> Nate
>
>
>
> --
> Nate D. Olive, M.A.
> PhD Student
> Natural Resource Recreation & Tourism
> Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources
> University of Georgia
> Office Phone 706-534-5033
> Landscape Ecology Lab 706-542-6183
> >>> Maria Gabriela Gomez <mariayya@...> 01/18/09 9:31 PM >>>
> Carbon neutral, possibly, but what about the ecosystems over there??
> resort¶ massive infraestructures generally mean, well, destruction. I
> doubt being guilt free in this kind of facility, not that easy.
>
> On 16/01/2009, Bruce Potter, IRF <bpotter@...> wrote:
> >
> > from sunday, 12 January NY TIMES Travel section
> >
> > January 11, 2009
> > Eco Destination of the Year
> > In the Bahamas, Paradise Without Guilt
> > By BARBARA IRELAND
> >
> > A STIFF breeze was roughing up the ocean, and spray shot up into
> > David Sklar's small boat with every bump across a wave. The Bahamian
> > sun beat down through patchy clouds, baking unprotected skin. A quick
> > turn into a protected cove and the wind was gone, but the big Yamaha
> > outboard still had work to do, idling against a tidal current
> > riffling up the aquamarine sea.
> >
> > A baby loggerhead turtle swam by, its graceful flippers and foot-wide
> > shell just below the surface in clear water. "Did you know the
> > turtles can move as fast as birds?" Mr. Sklar asked.
> >
> > Trade winds, sun and current - Mr. Sklar, 41, a Savannah, Ga.,
> > developer, and his partners plan to harness all of them to generate
> > electricity on Star Island (www.starislandbahamas.com), a 35-acre cay
> > near the Bahamian island of Eleuthera. The goal is to turn the
> > island, now home to nothing but sand, coral rock and trees, into the
> > world's first truly carbon-neutral resort island - uncompromisingly
> > luxurious, but without any reliance on fossil fuels that add carbon
> > dioxide to the atmosphere.
> >
> > Even the turtle, swimming about 30 yards off Star Island, represents
> > an opportunity - not for soup or biomass, but as a symbol of the
> > stakes of environmental preservation that Mr. Sklar hopes buyers will
> > find compelling when sales of vacation homes begin early this year. A
> > 68-room hotel is to follow, and some condos will be available for
> > short-term rentals.
> >
> > This project isn't alone - Richard Branson and Leonardo DiCaprio are
> > involved in carbon-neutral resort proposals in the Virgin Islands and
> > Belize, and a resort in the Maldives is undergoing a kind of
> > carbon-neutral retrofit. But Star Island is running ahead of the
> > trend. Design (by Mr. Sklar, who has a degree in architecture) and
> > government approvals are complete, and the first building is expected
> > to go up this year.
> >
> > The heart of Star Island's carbon neutrality will be a photovoltaic
> > roof and a small wind turbine on every building, generating enough
> > power to supply its own needs and send a surplus to banks of storage
> > batteries. Other green features include wastewater treatment using
> > technology developed for ships by the United States Coast Guard, a
> > lagoon for collecting runoff, and even a rooftop herb garden. Garbage
> > will be converted into fertilizer as well as fuel for extra
> > electrical wattage, some of which may one day power electric boats
> > plugging in at the island dock.
> >
> > It all sounded a bit fanciful last October, as Mr. Sklar gestured
> > toward a phantom reception center, bungalows and hotel while standing
> > on a ridge of barren rock (cabbage farmers cleared Star Island's
> > native vegetation long ago; on many maps, it still appears as Cabbage
> > Cay). But with travelers uneasy about contributing to climate change
> > while they play, the market for a guilt-free vacation appears ready
> > to tap.
> >
> > The dream of a carbon-neutral Bali Hai also captivated Richard
> > Brans> Gorda, with plans to develop "a showcase for sustainability and
> > eco-living," according to a statement from his Virgin Elite resort
> > group. For now, the project is still "very much in the planning and
> > development stages," a spokeswoman said. The idea also captured the
> > attention of Leonardo DiCaprio. Or rather, his purchase of Blackadore
> > Caye in Belize a few years ago captured the public's attention, with
> > a flurry of news reports about his plans to build a carbon-free
> > vacation spot. But "nothing has progressed on this for some time,"
> > said his publicist, Ken Sunshine.
> >
> > Across the world in the Maldives, Six Senses Resorts & Spas is
> > adapting its plush Soneva Fushi resort to go carbon-neutral by 2010.
> > Among other things, it is adding solar-powered steam turbines that
> > will power everything from the air-conditioning to a desalination
> > plant.
> >
> > Neither Soneva Fushi nor Star Island pretends to be inventing
> > anything new, although both hope other builders will use their ideas
> > as prototypes.
> >
> > "I use the analogy of the Prius," said Scott Sklar (no relation to
> > David Sklar), a Washington environmental consultant who is advising
> > Star Island. "An elegant integration of technology that was out there
> > - made seamless and very user-friendly."
> >
> > Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company
> > --
> > --
> >        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
> > --
> >        Island Resources Foundation      Fone  202/265-9712
> >        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4    fax   202/232-0748
> >        Washington, DC 20036     Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
> > -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
> > -- -- -- -- -
> > Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
> > <http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
> > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> > Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
> > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> >
>
>
> --
> Mari.
>
>


--
Mari.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Doesn’t the island currently absorb more carbon dioxide that it puts into
the atmosphere?  Carbon neutrality would be a step backwards wouldn’t it?



To truly calculate the carbon footprint of a business, the calculation must
include more than energy usage, but also the “carbon cost” of food,
materials, supplies, “commuting” by employees, and more.  Should the
calculation include carbon generated by the guests traveling to the island?



It might be possible for the island to become carbon neutral if it annually
bought additional carbon credits to offset a year’s worth of carbon
production by the resort.



Ed Blume

Communications/Outreach

RENEW Wisconsin

222 S. Hamilton St.

Madison, WI  53703

608.819.0748

Home page:  <http://www.renewwisconsin.org> http://www.renewwisconsin.org

Renewable Energy Blog: http://www.renew-energy-blog.org

Milwaukee Renewable Energy Blog:
http://renewableenergymilwaukee.blogspot.com
<http://renewableenergymilwaukee.blogspot.com/>

Madison Peak Oil Group Blog: http://www.madisonpeakoil-blog.blogspot.com

Skype: edblume

-----Original Message-----
From: sustainable-tourism@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:sustainable-tourism@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Maria Gabriela
Gomez
Sent: Sunday, January 18, 2009 8:32 PM
To: Bruce Potter, IRF
Cc: Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism
Subject: Re: [CAST] In the Bahamas, Paradise Without Guilt



Carbon neutral, possibly, but what about the ecosystems over there??
resorts´ massive infraestructures generally mean, well, destruction. I
doubt being guilt free in this kind of facility, not that easy.

On 16/01/2009, Bruce Potter, IRF <bpotter@irf. <mailto:bpotter%40irf.org>
org> wrote:
>
> from sunday, 12 January NY TIMES Travel section
>
> January 11, 2009
> Eco Destination of the Year
> In the Bahamas, Paradise Without Guilt
> By BARBARA IRELAND
>
> A STIFF breeze was roughing up the ocean, and spray shot up into
> David Sklar's small boat with every bump across a wave. The Bahamian
> sun beat down through patchy clouds, baking unprotected skin. A quick
> turn into a protected cove and the wind was gone, but the big Yamaha
> outboard still had work to do, idling against a tidal current
> riffling up the aquamarine sea.
>
> A baby loggerhead turtle swam by, its graceful flippers and foot-wide
> shell just below the surface in clear water. "Did you know the
> turtles can move as fast as birds?" Mr. Sklar asked.
>
> Trade winds, sun and current - Mr. Sklar, 41, a Savannah, Ga.,
> developer, and his partners plan to harness all of them to generate
> electricity on Star Island (www.starislandbahamas.com), a 35-acre cay
> near the Bahamian island of Eleuthera. The goal is to turn the
> island, now home to nothing but sand, coral rock and trees, into the
> world's first truly carbon-neutral resort island - uncompromisingly
> luxurious, but without any reliance on fossil fuels that add carbon
> dioxide to the atmosphere.
>
> Even the turtle, swimming about 30 yards off Star Island, represents
> an opportunity - not for soup or biomass, but as a symbol of the
> stakes of environmental preservation that Mr. Sklar hopes buyers will
> find compelling when sales of vacation homes begin early this year. A
> 68-room hotel is to follow, and some condos will be available for
> short-term rentals.
>
> This project isn't alone - Richard Branson and Leonardo DiCaprio are
> involved in carbon-neutral resort proposals in the Virgin Islands and
> Belize, and a resort in the Maldives is undergoing a kind of
> carbon-neutral retrofit. But Star Island is running ahead of the
> trend. Design (by Mr. Sklar, who has a degree in architecture) and
> government approvals are complete, and the first building is expected
> to go up this year.
>
> The heart of Star Island's carbon neutrality will be a photovoltaic
> roof and a small wind turbine on every building, generating enough
> power to supply its own needs and send a surplus to banks of storage
> batteries. Other green features include wastewater treatment using
> technology developed for ships by the United States Coast Guard, a
> lagoon for collecting runoff, and even a rooftop herb garden. Garbage
> will be converted into fertilizer as well as fuel for extra
> electrical wattage, some of which may one day power electric boats
> plugging in at the island dock.
>
> It all sounded a bit fanciful last October, as Mr. Sklar gestured
> toward a phantom reception center, bungalows and hotel while standing
> on a ridge of barren rock (cabbage farmers cleared Star Island's
> native vegetation long ago; on many maps, it still appears as Cabbage
> Cay). But with travelers uneasy about contributing to climate change
> while they play, the market for a guilt-free vacation appears ready
> to tap.
>
> The dream of a carbon-neutral Bali Hai also captivated Richard
> Branson, who bought Mosquito Island, a speck of land off Virgin
> Gorda, with plans to develop "a showcase for sustainability and
> eco-living," according to a statement from his Virgin Elite resort
> group. For now, the project is still "very much in the planning and
> development stages," a spokeswoman said. The idea also captured the
> attention of Leonardo DiCaprio. Or rather, his purchase of Blackadore
> Caye in Belize a few years ago captured the public's attention, with
> a flurry of news reports about his plans to build a carbon-free
> vacation spot. But "nothing has progressed on this for some time,"
> said his publicist, Ken Sunshine.
>
> Across the world in the Maldives, Six Senses Resorts & Spas is
> adapting its plush Soneva Fushi resort to go carbon-neutral by 2010.
> Among other things, it is adding solar-powered steam turbines that
> will power everything from the air-conditioning to a desalination
> plant.
>
> Neither Soneva Fushi nor Star Island pretends to be inventing
> anything new, although both hope other builders will use their ideas
> as prototypes.
>
> "I use the analogy of the Prius," said Scott Sklar (no relation to
> David Sklar), a Washington environmental consultant who is advising
> Star Island. "An elegant integration of technology that was out there
> - made seamless and very user-friendly."
>
> Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company
> --
> --
> 35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
> --
> Island Resources Foundation Fone 202/265-9712
> 1718 "P" St NW, # T-4 fax 202/232-0748
> Washington, DC 20036 Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
> -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
> -- -- -- -- -
> Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
> <http://www.irf. <http://www.irf.org/help/email.php> org/help/email.php >
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> Blogs at http://pottersweal. <http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/;>
wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>

--
Mari.





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

>Date:         Wed, 21 Jan 2009 12:20:38 -0000
>Reply-To: D.Chambers@...
>Sender: Members of the Society for Caribbean Studies based in UK
><CARIBBEAN-STUDIES@...>
>From: "Donna P. Chambers" <D.Chambers@...>
>Subject: Conference Announcement and advance Call for papers
>
>Dear Colleagues:
>
>I am sending this Conference announcement and advance Call for Papers
>again as I understand that attachments cannot be sent via this medium.
>My apologies to colleagues for inundating your inbox but this conference
>might be of interest to members of this group.
>
>
>The University of the West Indies
>
>in association with the
>
>University of Surrey, UK
>
>
>CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR PAPERS
>1ST INTERNATIONAL TOURISM CONFERENCE
>
>Beyond the boundary: Creating new epistemologies in tourism
>
>8-11 December 2009, Bridgetown (Barbados)
>
>
>Conference Organiser:
>The Department of Management Studies
>The University of the West Indies
>Cave Hill Campus
>Barbados
>
>
>
>Rationale
>
>Since the latter half of the twentieth century, the world has witnessed
>unparalleled change at both global and local levels with issues such as
>terrorism, globalisation, sustainability, climate change, poverty
>alleviation and migration assuming centre stage.  The demise of the
>Soviet Union almost two decades ago seemed to sound the death knell of
>socialist experiments but the recent collapse of international and
>national financial markets have also brought capitalist systems into
>question.  In this context it is clear that traditional ways of seeing
>and knowing no longer provide adequate explanations for the rapid pace
>of global and local change.  Tourism, which represents the largest
>voluntary movement of people across international boundaries, has not
>been untouched by these changes. While there have been some notable
>contributions with respect to critical approaches to tourism knowledge,
>there appears to still be a predominance of normative discourses and
>practices within tourism which fail to take account of, or even provide
>explanations of tourism within the context of rapid global and local
>change.
>
>It is therefore becoming increasingly evident that there is a need to
>look 'beyond the boundary' of normative discourses and practices of
>tourism by embracing cross disciplinary perspectives which can provide
>more plausible explanations for tourism phenomena within the context of
>the 21st century.
>
>Aim
>
>Against this background, this conference seeks to cross the disciplinary
>divide and invites colleagues and students from the widest array of
>disciplines to explore tourism phenomena through new methodological,
>ontological and epistemological lenses.  Ultimately it is hoped that
>this conference will in some way contribute to cross-disciplinary
>dialogues in tourism which can advance tourism knowledge and practice.
>
>
>Conference Tracks
>
>Areas of interest for the conference include but are not limited to
>papers which look 'beyond the boundary' between:
>
>* Tourism and Geography
>* Tourism and Anthropology
>* Tourism and Demography
>* Tourism and Sociology
>* Tourism and Economics
>* Tourism and the Environment
>* Tourism and Cultural Studies
>* Tourism and the Media
>* Tourism and Political Science
>* Tourism and Health
>* Tourism and Gender
>* Tourism and Management
>* Tourism and History
>* Tourism and International Relations
>* Tourism and Sexuality
>* Tourism and Poverty alleviation
>* Tourism and Disability
>* Tourism and Education
>* Tourism and Accounting
>
>
>Submission Guidelines:
>
>* Selection of papers will be based on abstract submissions.
>Working papers will also be accepted. Abstracts should not exceed 500
>words, 1.5 space, typed pages.
>
>* Indicate the author's name, affiliation and contact information
>(phone number and email address) only on the cover page of the abstract.
>Only the primary author will be notified regarding the outcome of the
>paper review process.
>
>* Submit abstracts to the Conference Co-ordinator, Dr. Sherma
>Roberts, by email:
> 	 sherma.roberts@...
>
>* Only original manuscripts not previously published or presented
>at another conference/forum should be submitted
>
>* For all accepted paper presentations, at least one (1) of the
>authors must register for and present the paper at the conference
>
>
>Conference Deadlines
>
>
>Submission of Abstracts
> 6 March 2009
>Notification of Acceptance/rejection
> 27 March 2009
>Full Paper submission
> 8 May 2009
>
>
>
>Dr. Donna Chambers
>Lecturer in Tourism Studies
>Programme Director MSc International Event Management
>Faculty of Management and Law
>University of Surrey
>Guildford
>GU2 7XH
>Tel: 01483 686360
>Email: d.chambers@...


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Another blow to tourism in the Caribbean --- NOW the song birds are
staying home.



>To: <birdscaribbean@yahoogroups.com>
>From: "Dobson, Andrew" <adobson@...>
>Sender: BirdsCaribbean@yahoogroups.com
>Date: Tue, 10 Feb 2009 23:02:26 -0400
>Subject: [BirdsCaribbean] Birds' Movements Reveal Global Warming
>Threat in Action
>
>
>Embargoed for Release:                       Contacts:         Nancy
>Severance: (212) 979-3124
>
>February 10, 2009
>Tony Iallonardo:  (202) 861-2242 X-3042
>
>                        nbsp;
>Delta Willis: (212) 979-3197
>
>
>
>See below for details of 2/10/09 media teleconference, 1 p.m. (eastern)
>
>
>
>Birds Movements Reveal Global Warming Threat in Action
>
>  Species Wintering Farther North Show Need for Policy Change
>
>
>
>WASHINGTON, DC, February 10, 2009-The northward and inland movement
>of North American birds, confirmed by thousands of
>citizen-observations, provides new and powerful evidence that global
>warming is having a serious impact on natural systems, according to
>new analyses by Audubon scientists. The findings signal the need for
>dramatic policy changes to combat pervasive ecological disruption.
>
>
>
>Analyses of citizen-gathered data from the past 40 years of
>Audubon's Christmas Bird Count (CBC) reveal that 58 percent of the
>305 widespread species that winter on the continent shifted
>significantly north since 1968, some by hundreds of miles.  Movement
>was detected among species of every type, including more than 70
>percent of highly adaptable forest and feeder birds. Only 38 percent
>of grassland species mirrored the trend, reflecting the constraints
>of their severely-depleted habitat and suggesting that they now face
>a double threat from the combined stresses of habitat loss and
>climate adaptation.
>
>
>
>Population shifts among individual species are common, fluctuate,
>and can have many causes.  However, Audubon scientists say the
>ongoing trend of movement by some 177 species-closely correlated to
>long-term winter temperature increases-reveals an undeniable link to
>the changing climate.
>
>
>
>"Birds are showing us how the heavy hand of humanity is tipping the
>balance of nature and causing ecological disruption in ways we are
>just beginning to predict and comprehend," said report co-author and
>Audubon Director of Bird Conservation, Greg Butcher, Ph.D. "Common
>sense dictates that we act now to curb the causes and impacts of
>global warming to the extent we can, and shape our policies to
>better cope with the disruptions we cannot avoid."
>
>
>
>Movements across all species-including those not reflecting the 40
>year trend-averaged   approximately 35 miles during the period.
>However, it is the complete picture of widespread movement and the
>failure of some species to move at all that illustrates the
>potential for problems.
>
>
>
>Purple Finch, Pine Siskin, and Boreal Chickadee have retreated
>dramatically north into the Canadian Boreal, their ranges moving an
>estimated 313, 246, and 211 miles respectively over 40 years.
>Continuing warming and development are predicted to have adverse
>impacts on the Boreal forest and the species that depend on it.
>
>
>Red-breasted Merganser, Ring-necked Duck, and American Black Duck,
>normally found in southern-tier states, have all taken advantage of
>warmer winter waters and have shifted their ranges north by an
>estimated 244, 169, and 141 miles. Still, they are likely to be
>negatively impacted by the increased drought expected in many parts
>of North America as global warming worsens.
>
>
>Only 10 of 26 grassland species moved north significantly, while
>nine moved south. Species such as Eastern Meadowlark, Vesper
>Sparrow, and Burrowing Owl were likely unable to move despite more
>moderate northern temperatures because essential  grassland habitat
>areas have disappeared, having been converted to intensive human
>uses such as row crops, pastures, and hayfields.  In combination,
>global warming and ongoing overuse of grasslands by humans will doom
>grassland birds to continued population declines.
>"Experts predict that global warming will mean dire consequences,
>even extinction, for many bird species, and this analysis suggests
>that that the process leading down that path is already well
>underway," warned Audubon President John Flicker. "We're witnessing
>an uncontrolled experiment on the birds and the world we share with
>them."
>
>
>
>Butcher explains that many birds move great distances to find
>suitable food and habitat, but questions how far they will be able
>to move in the face of climate change before they run out of
>habitat, food or even luck.  "The long term picture is not good for
>many species, and even in the short term, a single harsh winter
>could have a devastating impact on birds that have moved too far,"
>he adds.
>
>
>
>New forward-looking research from Audubon California reinforces the
>national findings, predicting that about 80 of that state's native
>bird species will experience significant climate-driven reductions
>in their geographic range over coming decades.
>
>
>
>Scientific models indicate that the magnitude of losses in
>California depends largely on steps taken now to reduce greenhouse
>gas emissions. The California Gnatcatcher could lose as much as 56
>percent of its range, or as little as 7 percent, depending on how
>climate change is addressed.  Projected range losses for the Bay
>area's popular Chestnut-backed Chickadee vary from 49 percent to as
>little as 16 percent.
>
>
>
>Detailed GIS maps produced using the California research project
>where the birds are likely to be in 50 to 100 years.  Findings will
>help policymakers and land managers augment efforts to mitigate the
>severity of global warming impacts with better habitat conservation
>investments to address changes that can't be avoided.
>
>
>
>"The birds are giving us yet another warning that it's time for
>urgent action," added Flicker.  "People hear about melting glaciers
>and changing weather, but now they can witness the impact global
>warming is having with the birds they see or don't see right outside
>their doors.  These birds are our 'canaries in the coal mine' and
>they're telling us that we'd better do something fast to curb global
>warming and to protect habitat."
>
>
>
>Scientists say bold action is needed to overcome threats from global
>warming. Audubon calls on Congress and the administration to advance
>policies that will drastically reduce global warming pollution, cut
>oil dependence in half, and invest in a clean energy future and the
>economic benefits it offers.  Americans can sign a petition
>at <http://www.birdsandclimate.org/>http://www.birdsandclimate.org/
>to demand aggressive federal policy action.
>
>
>
>Habitats already under siege from development, energy production,
>agricultural expansion and other human uses will require enhanced
>protection and restoration to sustain bird populations and provide
>ecological benefits essential to human health, economic prosperity
>and quality of life.  Conservation efforts based on forward looking
>projections such as those from Audubon California are essential.
>
>
>
>Audubon anticipates that the new avian evidence will help attract
>attention and spark action among more than 40 million U.S.
>bird-watchers, including tens of thousands who contributed to the
>Christmas Bird Count data on which the studies are based.  The
>109-year-old census provides the world's longest uninterrupted
>record of bird population trends.  "Citizen Science is allowing us
>to better recognize the impacts that global warming is having here
>and now.  Only citizen action can help us reduce them," said Butcher.
>
>###
>
>Now in its second century, Audubon connects people with birds,
>nature and the environment that supports us all. Our national
>network of community-based nature centers, chapters, scientific,
>education, and advocacy programs engages millions of people from all
>walks of life in conservation action to protect and restore the
>natural world.
>
>
>
>Reporters may join in a live, telephone briefing on the findings at
>1 p.m. (Eastern) on February 10.
>
>To participate, dial 1-866-710-0179.  Give the operator the pass
>code: Audubon 1
>
>
>TOP WAYS TO COMBAT GLOBAL WARMING
>
>AND ITS IMPACT ON BIRDS
>
>
>
>All of us have a role to play in reducing the worst impacts of
>global warming.  As individuals and engaged citizens, we can all
>take steps to reduce our energy use, switch to cleaner sources of
>power, conserve habitat and encourage our leaders to take immediate
>action.  Here's a short list:
>
>
>
>1. Be an Active Citizen
>
>Join Audubon's activist team and urge our elected official to make
>global warming a top priority by signing our petition at
><http://www.birdsandclimate.org/>http://www.birdsandclimate.org/
>Voice your support for new approaches to help solve global warming,
>move us toward a 100 percent clean energy future, reduce our
>dependence on oil, and protect our environment.  Stay informed,
>write letters to your leaders, and support candidates who promise to
>take the aggressive and farsighted actions necessary to curb global
>warming.
>
>
>
>2. Get Involved in Your Community
>
>Support conservation efforts that protect and restore essential bird
>habitat, keeping it healthy to better withstand global warming.
>Visit <http://www.audubon.org/>http://www.audubon.org/  to learn how
>the Important Bird Areas program is building a national network of
>conservation stewards. And join in "Citizen Science" efforts like
>the Christmas and Great Backyard Bird Counts
><http://www.audubon.org/bird/citizen/index.html>http://www.audubon.org/bird/cit\
izen/index.html
>
>
>
>3. Determine Your Energy Profile and Carbon Footprint
>
>An energy audit assesses how much energy you consume. A carbon
>footprint shows how much greenhouse gas you emit into the
>atmosphere. These figures can help you determine steps you can take
>to make your home, school, or office more energy efficient.  Many
>footprint calculators are available online.
>
>
>
>4. Reduce Energy Consumption
>
>Save money and energy by switching to compact fluorescent light
>bulbs and maximize the use you natural sunlight for daytime lighting
>needs.  Reduce excessive use of home heating and cooling and
>weatherize your home.  Buy energy efficient appliances such as those
>that are "Energy Star" compliant.
>
>
>
>5. Eat Locally Grown and Organic Produce
>
>The fewer miles your products travel, the less energy is used for
>refrigeration and transport. And buy organic. That reduces the use
>of pesticides that kill the organisms which help keep carbon in the
>soil.
>
>
>
>6. Shop Smarter
>
>Manufacturing, packing, transporting, and selling goods not only use
>huge amounts of energy but also release excessive amounts of
>greenhouse gases.  When shopping, always ask, "Do I really need
>this?  Does the Earth really need this?" You'll probably save money
>as well.
>
>
>
>7. Save Gas and Money
>
>Use public transportation, ride your bicycle, walk, carpool, and
>drive a more energy-efficient vehicle.    Keep tires properly
>inflated to increase fuel efficiency-it will lower your fuel costs.
>
>
>
>8. Plant More Trees and Buy Good Wood
>
>An average tree absorbs ten pounds of pollutants from the air each
>year, including four pounds of ground level ozone and three pounds
>of particulates.  So, plant leafy trees around your house to provide
>windbreaks and summer shade. When shopping for wood, ask about
>certified wood to support sustainably managed forests that are
>bird-friendly.
>
>
>
>9. Switch to Green Power
>
>Power plants are the single largest source of heat-trapping gases in
>the United States, but in some states you can switch to utilities
>that provide 50 to 100 percent renewable energy. You may also want
>to consider installing solar panels on your home.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>Snow Geese in sunrise (Chen caerulescens) Lonoke, Arkansas
>Photo/Kelly Chitwood
>
>**********************************************************************
>
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>
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>
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>
>the system manager.
>
>This footnote also confirms that this email message has been swept by
>
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>
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>
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--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

For a copy of this vital report, contact Erik Blommestein directly at
<erik.blommestein@...>


>Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2009 09:36:36 -0800 (PST)
>From: Erik Blommestein <erik.blommestein@...>
>Subject: Impact of the European ETS on Caribbean Tourism
>To: Mercedes Silva <msilva@...>
>Cc: McHale Andrew <mandrew@...>,
>         Jason Baptiste <jbaptiste@...>, john bell
><johnbell@...>,
>         Ministry of Tourism Youth and Sports SVG <tourism@...>
>
>Dear
>
>Effective 2012 the EU will include aviation in its emissions trading
>scheme.Inclusion of aviation will affect caribbean tourism but
>largely through a reduction in the growth of arrivals. I'm pleased
>to attached "The impact of the EU ETS on Caribbean Tourism".
>
>regards
>Erik Blommestein
>
>
>


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The other big impact on Caribbean Tourism that we can predict is what
will ensue from the lifting of the Cuban blockade by the United
States -- I am aware of only one research project which has  examined
this potentially critical impact, and that was the Florida Sea Grant
program, studying the impact on yachting-based tourism in Florida
when Cuba "opens."

Not too proactive, yet.

bruce potter .  . .  .



At 11:11 AM -0400 2/25/09, Michael.HENDRICKSON@... wrote:
>Hi Eric,
>
>Thanks for the information.  This portends ill for regional
>tourism-based economies.  I hope the region adopts a proactive
>stance to cushion the impact on arrivals.
>
>
>Regards
>
>
>Mike
>
>Erik Blommestein <erik.blommestein@...>
>
>23/02/2009 01:36 PM
>To Mercedes Silva <msilva@...>cc
>Subject Impact of the European ETS on Caribbean Tourism
>
>Dear
>
>Effective 2012 the EU will include aviation in its emissions trading
>scheme.Inclusion of aviation will affect caribbean tourism but
>largely through a reduction in the growth of arrivals. I'm pleased
>to attached "The impact of the EU ETS on Caribbean Tourism".
>
>regards
>Erik Blommestein



--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

At 10:49 PM +0100 3/8/09, trish Baily wrote:
>This came thru MAP news -  Mangrove Action Plan newsletter.  Š
>
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------\
------------
>STORIES / ISSUES
>
>
>Tourism Responsible For Coastal Resource Loss Cited
>
>Activists who attended the 2009 World Social
>Forum in Belém do Pará, Brazil, from 28 January
>to 1 February, denounced contemporary tourism
>policies dominated by the neoliberal vision of
>national governments, the global tourism
>industry and global organizations like the UNWTO
>and affirmed that it is urgent and possible to
>bring about another tourism (see #1).
>
>Mega-resort and real estate developments and the
>enormous problems they cause for society and the
>environment featured high on the agenda of the
>WSF tourism seminar. The plan to launch an
>international campaign on these issues found
>great interest so that activists in Latin
>America are now developing a concept for
>alliance-building and action. It is hoped that a
>wider range of popular movements - including
>fisherfolk, Indigenous Peoples, mangrove
>protectors and other environmentalists - will
>join the global action network that will work to
>protect coastlines and other valuable ecosystems
>from destructive resorts, golf courses and
>marinas. To facilitate the process, campaign
>groups, including the Tourism Investigation &
>Monitoring Team, have prepared a sign-on
>statement that calls for a moratorium on harmful
>mega-resorts and real estate developments (#2).
>
>If you can endorse the statement, please email
>us at tim-team timteam02@... or at
>Equations campaigns@....
>
>For some years already, Spain, and the Valencian
>Region in particular, have come in for heavy
>criticism for their infamous `land grab' town
>planning laws that allow resort developers to
>expropriate land from private owners (see #3).
>Victims of these laws, many of whom have lost
>their homes and been financially ruined by
>greedy businesspeople and politicians, took
>their complaints to Brussels when it became
>clear that the local administration did not
>care. Subsequently, the European Parliament has
>condemned Spain three times since 2003 on the
>`land grab' issue. On 11 February, members of
>the European Parliament (MEPs) launched a new
>offensive against the notorious Spanish laws
>after the Petitions Committee approved a damning
>new report slamming planning loopholes.
>
>This case from Spain illustrates as to how hard
>small land and home owners have to struggle
>against powerful alliances of unscrupulous
>developers and politicians. Sir Robert Atkins, a
>British Tory MEP, was quoted in The Telegraph
>(12 Feb 2009) as saying: "The scandalous
>behaviour of some developers, builders and local
>authorities resulting in people losing their
>homes has to stop now. The emotional and
>financial trauma suffered by so many legitimate
>home owners has to be rectified." He added, "The
>European Parliament has expressed a forceful
>condemnation of Spanish Land Law and its
>implementation and it is imperative that all
>political parties in Spain understand the anger
>of residents and act to change the law as soon
>as possible." Hopefully, such sympathy and
>solidarity action are not only restricted to
>Europe but will also be extended to farmers and
>fishers folks in Third World countries, who are
>even more vulnerable and defenseless
>when tourism and real estate developers
>illegitimately take over their land, forests and
>beaches.
>
>Yours truly,
>Anita Pleumarom
>Tourism Investigation & Monitoring Team
>
>-----------------------------------
>DECLARATION OF BELEM - GLOBAL TOURISM INTERVENTIONS FORUM
>
>World Social Forum, Belém do Pará - Brazil, 28 January to 1 February 2009
>
>We, participants of the Global Tourism
>Interventions Forum, which took place between 28
>January and 1 February during the World Social
>Forum in Belém of Pará, Brazil, Pan-Amazon
>region, members of organizations of countries of
>Latin America, North America, Asia, Africa and
>Europe, affirm that another tourism is possible
>and urgent!
>
>We denounce the hegemonic tourism policies as
>the main obstacle to build another model of
>tourism. These policies are characterized
>by:>>the neoliberal vision of national
>governments, the global tourism industry and
>global organizations like the UNWTO;>>the
>privatization of territories of traditional and
>indigenous people by trans and multinational
>corporations backed by the governments,
>especially in developing countries;
>
>the unpunished favoring of continuing sexual and
>economical exploitation of the labor and body of
>women, of children and young people and of
>workers, a clear and repugnant violation of
>human, social and labor rights;
>the destruction of the environment, in coastal
>areas, forests, territories of traditional and
>indigenous people and places of great natural
>scenic beauty, where big tourist real estate
>enterprises are installed bringing about
>financial speculation;
>the lack of democracy and transparency with
>which they are implemented, deliberately
>excluding the participation of communities and
>critical organizations in the decision-making
>process;
>the aggravation of poverty among local populations and of social inequality;
>the concentration of income from tourism in the
>hands of big corporations facilitated by large
>amounts of public funds and by international
>financial institutions;
>and the deregulation of tourism contributing to
>the several social and environmental conflicts
>that we identify in various parts of the world
>as a result of predatory, excluding and
>unsustainable tourism.
>
>Conventional tourism contributes to global
>warming and climate change. It emits greenhouse
>gases while privileging tourism transport means
>moved by fossil fuels, besides other
>unsustainable practices and consumption forms.
>While settling in coastal-marine areas, in
>territories of indigenous and traditional
>peoples who live interlinked with the
>environment, destroying natural ecosystems (dune
>fields, mangrove swamps, sandbanks) for the
>construction of resorts and hotels, and when
>privileging a mass tourism that doesn't respect
>the carrying capacity, neither the needs,
>aspirations and sustainability concerns of
>communities of the tourist "destinations", while
>privatizing territories expelling many
>communities towards unhealthy and unworthy urban
>areas it increases social and climatic injustice
>and the vulnerability of these communities with
>respect to the impacts of climate change. We
>will raise more awareness about the relationship
>between tourism and climate change in the
>current negotiations of the UN Convention on
>Climate Change.
>
>We defend a kind of tourism, with a logic
>opposed to this current model of tourism and
>speculative real estate development that
>threatens the territories of traditional
>peoples, trying to transform nature enclaves and
>cultures into economic goods in the interest of
>big capital. In fact, with hope,
>self-determination and courage, several
>experiences based on networks are blooming in
>all continents, which clearly respect
>community-based and solidarity tourism, firmly
>guided by the respect of local cultures and the
>environment. These are legitimate expressions of
>struggle and resistance of communities against a
>conventional, unsustainable and exploitative
>tourism, the defense of their territories and
>natural resources, rescue and affirmation of
>their deep cultural expressions, and a means to
>strengthen their local and community
>organizations. These are experiences of a
>tourism model that values the way of life of
>those communities, narrowly linked to the
>ecosystems that guarantee their survival.
>
>We call upon all citizens of the world to
>contribute to the consolidation of
>community-based, solidarity, just and
>sustainable tourism, through their organizations
>and as conscious consumers, and to produce and
>exchange knowledge and experiences; to defend
>public policies that seek the regulation of
>tourism, immediately stop public financing of
>tourism mega-enterprises and ensure the right of
>access of communities to the territory, of the
>constitutional and human rights of the
>communities to development and
>self-determination, as well as the rigorous
>application of the environmental legislation
>respecting biological and cultural diversity;
>and to support the resistance struggles in the
>whole world as well as the alternatives and
>concrete experiences of community-based and
>solidarity tourism.
>Belém, 1 February 2009.
>
>Brazilian Forum of NGOs and Social Movements for the Environment and
>the Development (FBOMS), Argonautas Environmentalists of the Amazon,
>EQUATIONS (India), Forum for the Defense of Ceara Coast, Institute
>Terramar, TURISOL Network, TUCUM Network, Coopesolidar (Costa Rica),
>Institute Vitae Civilis, Association for the Defense and the
>Development of Kuelap (Peru), Alba Sud (Spain/Nicaragua), Association
>for Responsible Tourism (Spain), Brazilian Institute for Consumers
>Defense, Community Mapuche-Tehuelche Pu Fotum Mapu (Argentina),
>Association Amigos of Prainha do Canto Verde (Switzerland).
>
>For more information, contact:
>FBOMS - Fórum Brasileiro de ONGs e Movimentos Sociais
>para o Meio Ambiente e o Desenvolvimento
>SCS, Quadra 08, Bloco B-50
>Edifício Venâncio 2000, Sala 105
>CEP 70333-900
>Brasília, DF - Brasil
>Fone: (61) 3033.5535 ou 3033.5545
>www.fboms.org.br
>
>Source:  Tourism Investigation & Monitoring Team
>timteam02@...>
>==================================
>
>
>Trish Baily: Captain/Manager Yacht Serendipity,
>British Virgin Islands. Tel: 284 4967557,
>ecosail@..., www.sailserendipity.com.
>AN ECOSAILING ADVENTURE WHERE YOU -  SAIL AROUND
>THE ISLANDS NOT AROUND A MENU.


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
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>Date: Sun, 29 Mar 2009 00:28:01 -0400
>To: bpotter@...
>Subject: Science News : This Week
>From: "Science News" <scinews@...>
>
><http://www.sciencenews.org>
><http://www.sciencenews.org/subscribe>
>
>
Home / News / News item
TALLYING EMISSIONS IN PORTS AND AT SEA
Ships are major contributors to acid rain and
ground-level ozone concentrations in some regions



By Sid Perkins
Friday, March 27th, 2009


diagram caption
OCEAN ROADS
This map shows the world's shipping routes,
compiled using data gathered earlier this decade.
Red and orange depict the 1-degree-by-1-degree
region where ships most often sail; green and
yellow depict less-traveled areas.
Dalsøren et al.

Emissions from oceangoing ships substantially
boost acid rain on shore and may account for more
than a quarter of the ground-level ozone in some
coastal areas, a new study reveals.
Many commercial vessels, especially long-haul
cargo ships, spend much of their time in
international waters. Nevertheless, exhaust from
these ships contributes to onshore pollution:
Studies have shown that about 70 percent of
shipping occurs within 400 kilometers of land.

To assess the amount of pollution spewed by
ships, as well as pinpoint where those emissions
occur, Stig Dalsøren, an atmospheric scientist at
the University of Oslo in Norway, and his
colleagues analyzed data gathered worldwide
during 2004.

In 2004, the world's merchant fleet included
almost 91,000 ships that each weigh at least
100,000 tons, Dalsøren says. To tally the
emissions from those vessels, the team divided
the ships into 15 categories - everything from
tugboats and trawlers to cruise ships and
supertankers - subdivided each category into
seven weight ranges, and then estimated the
emissions that each type of ship would produce
while cruising at sea or while idling in port.
Then, the researchers used information about the
routes sailed by about 32,000 ships during 2004,
including time spent in port, to determine where
emissions were produced. The team reported its
findings online March 24 in Atmospheric Chemistry
and Physics.

Together, ships worldwide burned about 217
million metric tons of fuel in 2004, about 5
percent of which was consumed while in port,
Dalsøren says. Because much of that fuel was
sulfur-rich diesel, emissions included more than
16 million tons of sulfur dioxide. That gas, plus
the various nitrogen oxides, or NOx, gases in the
engine exhaust, reacts with moisture in the air
to produce acid rain. Worldwide, ships account
for about 11 percent of the acid rain due to NOx
emissions and about 4.5 percent of the acid rain
due to sulfur dioxide emissions, the team
estimates. In Singapore, the world's most visited
port, about 15 percent of the sulfur dioxide in
the air comes from ships. In some coastal areas
with little industrial activity but a lot of
ships passing nearby, such as the northwestern
coasts of North America and Scandinavia, as much
as half of the acid rain there may stem from ship
emissions.
Ships are also responsible for considerable
amounts of ground-level ozone, which is produced
when sunlight stimulates chemical reactions in
emissions-rich air. In some parts of western
Europe, between 5 and 15 percent of the
ground-level ozone comes from ship emissions. In
some areas of western North America, as much as
25 percent of that pollutant can be traced back
to ships, Dalsøren says.

The new findings reveal "the important influence
of ship emissions on air quality in busy ports,"
says David Stevenson, an atmospheric scientist at
the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. The
research also suggests that the largest sources
of emissions are container ships, the vessels
most responsible for carrying large volumes of
consumer goods on transoceanic routes. As
land-based sources of pollutants become more
regulated, pollutants in the exhaust from ships
will make up a growing proportion of
anthropogenic emissions.

"What's really cool about this study is that the
results are converging" with data now being
compiled by the International Maritime
Organization, says James Corbett, a marine policy
analyst at the University of Delaware in Newark.
The London-based IMO, an agency within the United
Nations, is responsible for improving maritime
safety and preventing pollution from ships,
Corbett notes. The new findings will enable
scientists and policymakers to better estimate
the effects of proposed regulations on various
types of ships, he adds.



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--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
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from a slide show presented by the  Det Norske Veritas (DNV) European
environmental certification agency to the OECD in November 2008:
	 http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/32/43/41750201.pdf

shows a larger scale map of ship transit which indicates the high
volume of shipping in the Caribbean . . .
-==-=-=-=-=-


?
Shipping activity has increased significantly over the last century.
This growth
has been driven by increased demand for passenger and cargo transport. The
main developments during this period were that oil replaced coal, and the
transition to a diesel-powered fleet.
?
RECENT STUDIES INDICATE THAT TODAY EMISSION OF CO 2, NOXAND SO2 BY SHIP
CORRESPONDS TO ABOUT 2-3%, 10-15% AND 4-9% OF THE GLOBAL ANTHROPOGENIC
EMISSIONS, RESPECTIVELY.

Ship emissions of NO 2, CO, NMVOCs and SO2and primary particles cause
problems in coastal areas and harbours with heavy traffic and high pollution
levels.
?
Most studies so far indicate that ship emissions lead to a net global cooling.
However, it should be stressed that the uncertainties are large.
?
Projections up to year 2020 indicate that regulations and measures will be
outweighed by an increase in traffic leading to a SIGNIFICANT GLOBAL
INCREASE in
emissions from shipping.
?
Our results for year 2050 indicate fuel consumptions between 2-3 times present
level, and to contribute to GHG reduction will then be challenging.
?
Global studies for the future indicate that the RELATIVE CONTRIBUTION
TO POLLUTANTS
(OZONE, NO 2, PARTICLES) FROM SHIPPING COULD INCREASE, ESPECIALLY IN
REGIONS LIKE
THE ARCTIC AND SOUTH-EAST ASIA, where a substantial increase in ship traffic is
expected.

--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
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-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

BARBADOS-BASED ATLANTIS SUBMARINES FIRST TO BE CERTIFIED BY GREEN GLOBE/GREEN
CERTIFICATIONS PROGRAM
Green Globe International, Inc. and Green Certifications, Inc., which have
together launched a dual certification program for businesses in the travel and
hospitality markets, today announced that Atlantis Submarines Barbados is the
first attraction to achieve certification under the dual Green Globe/Green
Certifications program.

Atlantis Submarines in Bridgetown, Barbados operates an authentic submarine
which is part of the largest fleet of recreational submarines in the world and
daily takes guests to depths of 130 feet and deeper to explore the natural reef
off the west coast of Barbados. For more information on Atlantis Submarines
Barbados, please visit http://www.atlantisadventures.com/barbados.cfm.

Roseanne Myers, General manager of Atlantis Submarine Barbados, commented, "This
is a fantastic achievement for us, and it signals that we have started down a
positive path to measuring and eventually reducing our carbon footprint as well
as increasing our overall positive impact on the social and natural environment.
We already had a number of safety, quality, and preventative maintenance program
in place, but we did not realize that the Green Globe/Green Certification would
include an assessment of these as well as environmental education and management
systems. Most of all, it was paperless and painless, though we have lots more
work to do."

Green Globe International and Green Certifications, Inc. have established a
co-branding relationship under which they deliver a dual certification to
identify compliance with internationally accepted green, sustainability
standards to tourism properties and businesses. Under the program, Green
Certifications has initiated sales and marketing efforts in North, Central and
South America, the Caribbean, and Europe, the first regions targeted under the
partnership.

"We are pleased to announce Atlantis Submarine Barbados as the first attraction
to have achieved certification under the dual Green Globe/Green Certifications
program," stated Guido Bauer, CEO of Green Certifications, Inc. "They should be
commended for their commitment to environmental and social responsibility, and
we hope that the certification will help to draw additional business from
visitors who share Atlantis Submarines' concern for the environment."

For more information of Green Globe/Green Certifications programs, please call
+1-310-984-6807 or visit www.greencertifications.com.

The Green Globe brand and program trace their roots back to the United Nations
Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992, where 182 Heads of State endorsed the
Agenda 21 principles of Sustainable Development.

Green Globe International, an affiliate member of the United Nations World
Tourism Organization (UNWTO), has endorsed the efforts of the United Nations
Foundation, Rainforest Alliance, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
and the UNWTO in launching the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria (GSTC).

To receive updates or information on Green Globe International and the Green
Globe program, please visit www.greenglobeint.com.

About Green Certifications, Inc.
Green Certifications, Inc. (www.greencertifications.com) owns Green Hotel
Certification, a leading third party certification based on internationally
accepted documentation. The seal is an independent recognition of sustainability
efforts. Environmental and cultural levels as well as Corporate Social
Responsibilities are benchmarked against the highest worldwide principles. Its
object is to introduce and strengthen sustainability and social practices at all
levels of management in the hospitality industry. The Green Hotel Certification
seal also provides a distinguished promotional tool to reach a growing
environmentally-aware global consumer market. Green Hotel Certification offers a
completely paperless certification process which guarantees an efficient
process. Through this system, properties are updated on a constant basis to
ensure highest international standards. Its dedicated auditors work on-site,
performing evaluation, implementation, solution-finding and training throughout.
More information on Green Hotel Certification can be found at
www.greenhotelcertification.com.

About Green Globe International, Inc.
Green Globe International, Inc. is the majority owner of Green Globe, Ltd., a
British company that owns the Green Globe brand, the premier international brand
for sustainable travel, tourism and related green businesses. Green Globe's
worldwide network extends across nearly 50 countries. Green Globe International
has been admitted as an affiliate member of the United Nations World Tourism
Organization. The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the business leaders'
forum for the travel and tourism industry, is a 5% common stock owner of Green
Globe International. For more information on Green Globe International, please
visit www.greenglobeint.com.


Contacts:
For Green Globe International, Inc.
A. Beyer
Tel: +1 951 677 8073
investors@...
www.greenglobeint.com

For Green Certifications, Inc.
Guido Bauer
Tel: +1-310-929-7460
contact@...
www.greencertifications.com

>Date: Mon, 6 Apr 2009 18:39:09 +0100
>Subject: General Manager for Business Class Hotel
>From: "Terry Ally (Gmail)" <terryally@...>
>To: loretobarbados@..., loretoduffy@..., bpotter@...,
>         sues@...
>
>Dear Loreto, Sue and Bruce,
>
>I am writing you in the hope that the
>advertisement below might be circulated to
>interested parties. It is almost
>self-explanatory. Š
>
>Appreciate your assistance and/or feedback.
>
>Best Regards
>--
>Terry Ally
>+44 (0)790 447 3683
>
>~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
>
>Hotel General Manager
>
>
>The Lakeside International Hotel in Frimley
>Green, Camberley, Surrey, England is a
>three-star business hotel which was built in
>1988 to fill a void for accommodation for
>visiting businessmen.
>
>Since then, this family-run business has grown
>and expanded. It now requires the services of a
>general manager with exceptional business,
>marketing, and personnel management acumen, who
>thinks outside the box, to engineer a foundation
>for continued growth and development of the
>brand into a product that would differentiate it
>from its competitors.
>
>The company's website is
><http://www.lakesideinternationalhotel.com/>www.lakesideinternationalhotel.com.
>
>The company is seeking expressions of interest
>which should include a statement on the
>candidate's experience with specific examples of
>success in the hospitality business, a general
>statement on the challenges that are faced when
>converting family-run operations to a diffused
>corporate operation, a general framework
>proposal on how he/she would convert and grow
>the business, and a remuneration package
>proposal.
>
>Expressions of interest should be emailed to
><mailto:gm_vacancy@...>gm_vacancy@...
>in PDF format, addressed to:
>
>Mrs Barbara Leitch
>Company Secretary
>Bob Potter Leisure Limited
>Wharf Road, Frimley Green
>Surrey GU16 6PT
>England
>
>Expressions of interest should reach her no later than 26 April 2009.


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
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Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/04/11/no-more-new-hotel-bali-administrat\
ion.html

No more new hotel for Bali: Administration
Ni Komang Erviani ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Denpasar   |  Sat,
04/11/2009 1:43 PM  |  Bali

In an effort to protect the resort island's natural environment, the
Bali provincial administration has decided to stop issuing official
recommendations for the construction of new hotels, villas or
homestays.
The decision was made during the three-day Development Planning
Meeting (Musrenbang) attended by representatives from the province's
eight regencies and one municipality.

"This policy was introduced as part of our efforts to protect the
environment from potential damages," head of the Bali Provincial
Development Planning Board (Bappeda), Nengah Suarca, said Wednesday.
"The moratorium for the construction of new hotels is an appropriate
measure to secure the island's future."

The current legal procedure on the construction of tourism facilities
stipulates the central government in Jakarta has the authority to
grant the investor a permit to construct new hotels.

However, the granting of such a permit will be based primarily on
whether the investor has acquired an official recommendation from the
provincial administration.

"We will not tolerate the construction of new hotels," Suarca said,
stressing the local administration would not issue any official
recommendations during the temporary moratorium.
The moratorium is temporary, he added.

However, the administration has yet to issue any time frame related
to the moratorium. Exceptions are granted to investors who had
acquired the permit and official recommendation before 2009.
Suarca argued uncontrolled development of tourism facilities,
particularly hotels, had triggered various environmental damage on
the island. DATA FROM BAPPEDA SHOWS BALI HAS AS MANY AS 50,000 ROOMS
AT HOTELS, VILLAS AND HOMESTAYS IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE ISLAND.

"Ideally, 25,000 rooms are sufficient. Uncontrolled hotel development
negatively affects the island in terms of environmental loss, through
the conversion of rice fields, forests and water catchment areas,''
he pointed out.

Moreover, he stressed, the number of available hotels' rooms in Bali
had reached saturation point.
"The number has become inappropriate for an island as tiny as Bali."

Commenting on the moratorium, chairman of the Bali chapter of the
Association of Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants (PHRI), Tjokorda Oka
Artha Ardana Sukawati, said it was a positive policy.
"In fact, we have been recommending such a policy for a long time,
particularly a moratorium on large hotels."

He disclosed there had been a disturbing disparity between supply and
demand in relation to the rooms' availability and the number of
visitors.

"During the holiday seasons, the available rooms are indeed
insufficient to accommodate the surge of visitors," Ardana said.

--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
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-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

>Date:         Wed, 22 Apr 2009 18:13:20 +0100
>Sender: Members of the Society for Caribbean Studies based in UK
><CARIBBEAN-STUDIES@...>
>From: "Donna P. Chambers" <D.Chambers@...>
>Subject: 1st International Tourism Conference, Barbados - Final Call
>for Papers!
>To: CARIBBEAN-STUDIES@...
>List-Subscribe: <mailto:CARIBBEAN-STUDIES-subscribe-request@...>
>
>Dear Colleagues:
>
>The University of the West Indies (UWI), in association with the
>University of Surrey, is pleased to announce the Final Call for Papers
>for the 1st International Tourism Conference titled ' Beyond the
>boundary: Creating new epistemologies in Tourism' to be held at the
>University of the West Indies, Cave Hill, Bridgetown, Barbados from 8-11
>December 2009.  As a result of several requests a final deadline for
>submission of abstracts has been set at 6 May 2009.   Please submit your
>abstracts to Dr. Sherma Roberts at UWI, email,
>sherma.roberts@...
>
>We also wish to announce that in addition to providing the opportunity
>for selected papers from the conference to be considered for a special
>issue of the peer reviewed journal, Tourism and Hospitality Research, to
>be published in 2010, the conference organisers also expect to negotiate
>with various publishers with a view to publishing a book with selected
>conference papers also in 2010.  Colleagues who wish to take advantage
>of these publication opportunities are required to submit full papers no
>later than 28 August 2009.
>
>For further details of the conference, please visit the conference
>website at http://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/fss/tourism_conference2009
>
>We look forward to receiving your Abstracts and to seeing you in
>Barbados in December!
>
>Best regards,
>
>Donna
>
>*************************
>
>Dr. Donna Chambers
>Lecturer in Tourism Studies
>Programme Manager, MSc International Event Management
>Faculty of Management and Law
>University of Surrey
>Guildford
>GU2 7XH
>Tel: 01483 686 360
>email: d.chambers@...


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
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[Thanks to Kathleen and Nicole for this valuable
study. Abstract and Introduction below -- try to
get the article on-line, if not, write to me soon
for a copy. . .  bruce potter]

>Reply-To: ksealey@...
>Date: Sun, 3 May 2009 13:38:08 -0400
>Subject: REPRINT OF BAKERS BAY DEVELOPMENT IN JOUIRNAL OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
>From: Kathleen Sullivan-Sealey <ksealey56@...>
>To: Potter at Island Resources <bpotter@...>
>
>Dear Bruce,
>
>FYI - finally this article is coming out this
>month - it was a very controversial project -
>but this is one of several papers we submitted
>on specific details of development management.
>
>Thanks for all the good information you pass on..
>
>--
>Kathleen Sullivan Sealey
>Associate Professor
>Department of Biology
>University of Miami
><http://henge.bio.miami.edu/coastalecology/index.htm>http://henge.bio.miami.edu\
/coastalecology/index.htm
>
>
>IF YOU HAVE SEEN LIONFISH IN THE BAHAMAS - COMPLETE AN ON-LINE SURVEY
>AT
><https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=qn4KufOIFUFg9YbbOLntPA_3d_3d>https://ww\
w.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=qn4KufOIFUFg9YbbOLntPA_3d_3d
>
>Mailing address remains:
>Department of Biology
>P.O. Box 249118
>University of Miami
>Coral Gables, Fl 33124 USA

- - - - - - - - -

Journal of Sustainable Tourism
Vol. 17, No. 3, May 2009, 375-395

Efforts, resources and costs required for long term environmental
management of a resort development: the case of Baker's Bay Golf
and Ocean Club, The Bahamas
Kathleen Sullivan-Sealeya,b and Nicolle Cushiona£�

£�Corresponding author. Email: nicollec@...
ISSN 0966-9582 print / ISSN 1747-7646 online
C 2009 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/09669580802275994
http://www.informaworld.com
Downloaded By: [Cushion, Nicolle] At: 16:43 3 May 2009

Biology Department, University of Miami, Coral
Gables, Florida, USA; bThe College of The
Bahamas, Marine and Environmental Studies Institute, Nassau, The Bahamas
(Received 15 October 2007; final version received 25 March 2008)

The natural resources upon which the tourism
industry relies upon are subjected to intense
pressure during and post development. Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs)
are the generalmethod used to evaluate the
potential impacts of a development.However,
EIAs rarely incorporate an EIA-auditing
mechanism, or set environmental standards,
for evaluating the long term impacts of a
proposed development project. The Baker's
Bay Golf and Ocean Club (BBC) serves as a coastal
tourism development case study,
where an Environmental Management Program (EMP) and prescribed environmental
goals were incorporated into the EIA. The goal of
this paper is to document the efforts,
resources and costs required to implement the EMP
in an effort to meet the project goals.
Lessons learned include the need to mitigate
damaged environments, include measurable
ecological goals, and establish an open
communications system. Substantial time,
costs and resources were necessary to implement
the EMP and this information should
be incorporated into development planning to
establish a process to follow through on
EIA recommendations.

Keywords: coastal development; environmental management; island tourism

Introduction
The rationale behind environmentally responsible
tourism development is that the susceptibility
of nature can be documented and mitigated if planned properly (Miller & Auyong,
1991). To properly plan and manage tourist
developments, it is necessary to understand the
physical and biological environmentwhich is to be
developed and to ensure that themajority
of plausible implications for the natural
ecosystem are articulated (Miller&Auyong, 1991).
Internationally this is facilitated by an
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for new
development projects. EIA is a systematic
procedure for enabling possible environmental
impacts and planning alternatives to be
considered before a decision is made whether a
project should be given approval by the
regulatory authorities (Dipper, Jones, & Wood,
1998).
Environmental Impact Assessments, however, are often static exercises performed
purely to achieve development consent, rather
than a tool for sound environmental management
and protection. Sadler (1998) noted that the EIA
process is frequently viewed as
"falling short" of realizing its full potential
as a mechanism for informed decision making
because of a lack of quality in the EIA
preparation, accuracy in the prediction of
impacts,

376 K. Sullivan-Sealey and N. Cushion
and suitable mitigation measures. Andriotis
(2008) reviewed an EIA of a pre-development
stage of a large-scale resort on the island of
Crete to anticipate the tourism impacts of a
proposed integrated resort. The study found that
environmental issues pertaining to water
supply, sewage and waste management, and removal
and replacement of native vegetation
were not fully addressed in the EIA. Further, it
was felt that a post-EIA audit was required
to investigate whether the EIA predictions or the
anticipated impacts reported in the study
would be experienced after the resort's
construction. Warnken and Buckley (2000) found
that the lack of post-EIA or operational phase
monitoring of tourism facilities is a common
issue for tourism in Australia. They reviewed 175
tourism facilities subjected to EIAs from
1980 to 1993 and only 13 were subjected to formal
monitoring post-development (Warnken
& Buckley, 2000). Those with sufficient data were
mainly pontoon boats that were primarily
monitored by default under mandates for the Great
Barrier Marine Park. Hence, there
is limited specialized literature on the design
of formal EIA performance measures, and
few studies exist where a tourism development
project has been monitored and assessed,
prior and during construction, and subsequently
during the operational phase (Sadler,
1998).

To monitor whether a tourist development is
environmentally responsible or implementing
best-known management practices, an EIA
post-audit programme needs to be in place
that is scientifically rigorous, with specific
objectives that are defined before the programme
begins (Bisset & Tomlinson, 1998). Thus, the EIA
process needs to be advanced by outlining
environmental and ecological goals. EIAs should
incorporate mitigation efforts for
degraded environments (UNEP & WTO, 2005), long
term environmental baseline studies,
and monitoring during the construction and
operational phases. These are necessary so
that impacts can be measured and resulting
mitigations can be assessed to gauge their
effectiveness (Andriotis, 2008; Dipper, Jones, &
Wood 1998; Sadler, 1998). Additionally,
the costs, efforts, and resources required to
conduct environmental management must be
documented and analyzed to fully understand which
resources and finances are required.
The term "sustainability" is best avoided in
consideration of a single site development,
because it perhaps applies more to a larger
ecological scale. In addition, this concept would
relate to social and economic factors as well as the environment.

In The Bahamas, the Office of The Prime Minister
and Ministry of Tourism administer
the National Investment Policy, which promotes
use of the country's natural resources for
tourism development (Wells-Moultrie, 2006).
Tourism, including the aspects related to the
environment, is regulated by the Office of The
Prime Minister, Ministry of Tourism, and
the Bahamas Environmental Science and Technology
(BEST) Commission. For proposed
tourism developments which impact on the human
and natural resources of The Bahamas,
EIAs are mandatory. The BEST Commission reviews
all EIAs, which are prepared using
pre-approved companies. Thus, presently there is
a national system for review and approval
of tourism developments, but there is no
systematic approach to the monitoring of
developments for environmental impacts once they
are under construction or in operation
(Wells-Moultrie, 2006).

Tourism is an important development pressure in
The Bahamas, where it is estimated
that tourism produces 50-60% of the gross
domestic product and directly or indirectly
employs 50-60% of the total workforce (COB-BEST, 2005). There are many types of
tourism in The Bahamas, including cruise ships,
yachting, large-scale and small-scale
resorts, and vacation homes. All tourism is
dependent on the quality of the country's
natural resources, namely its native flora and
fauna, beaches and coastal waters; thus efforts
for promoting environmentally responsible tourism
have become widely embraced (BEST,
2002).


The goal of this paper is to document the
efforts, costs, and resources required to
implement the Environmental Management Program
(EMP) for a tourist development in
The Bahamas. The BBC is used as a case study, and
two stages of the project have been
documented to date. These are, first, the
pre-development baseline studies and mitigation
efforts; and, second, the Phase I of construction
(lot and road clearing and infrastructure
installation). This is the first study of its
kind in The Bahamas and represents a unique
collaboration between the developers, the
Government of The Bahamas, and academics.

Downloaded By: [Cushion, Nicolle] At: 16:43 3 May 2009
Journal of Sustainable Tourism 377
--
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        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
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>Date: Thu, 14 May 2009 08:24:59 -0400
>From: FAO-Carib-Agri <FAO-Carib-Agri@...>
>Subject: FW: Tourism development that could affect fisheries: Landmark
>  Environmental Case in the British Virgin Islands
>To: LIST <carib-agri-l@...>
>List-Owner: <mailto:Carib-Agri-L-Owner@...>
>List-Subscribe:
><mailto:mailserv@...?body=subscribe%20Carib-Agri-L>
>
>FAO Carib-Agri is a service provided by the FAO Sub-Regional Office, Barbados
>==========================================================
>
>Landmark Environmental Case in the British Virgin Islands
>
>
>
>A precedent-setting legal case seeking to stop the construction of a
>tourism development that could affect fisheries in protected areas
>is being heard in the British Virgin Islands courts this week. The
>case, brought forth by the Virgin Islands Environmental Council,
>seeks judicial review of a decision by the former NDP Government to
>grant approval for the construction of a five-star hotel, marina,
>and golf course that would destroy the biologically important Hans
>Creek Fisheries Protected Areas in Beef Island. At threat is one of
>the most important mangrove systems in the BVI, providing a vital
>home for hatchlings and juvenile fish, lobster and conch. The case
>was inspired in part by the Save the Guana Cay Reef action in the
>Bahamas.
>
>The case marks the first environmental and public-interest challenge
>to a government decision in the BVI. The Virgin Islands
>Environmental Council (VIEC) is a coalition of local fishermen,
>concerned residents, scientists and environmental activists seeking
>to protect the fisheries. Unable to secure the assistance of a local
>lawyer, the group reached out to Fred Smith, the Freeport (Bahamas)
>attorney that argued the Save Guana Cay Reef case. Smith's timely
>encouragement and advice enabled VIEC to file their claim against
>the decision within the six-month time limit for bringing judicial
>review.
>
>A council spokesman said: "This is a landmark case that addresses a
>number of important issues which will impact on the future of
>environmental law and practice throughout the Caribbean. The outcome
>of this case will definitely impact the way other large projects
>currently under planning review are dealt with, leading to a more
>sustainable future for the BVI. The case will serve to define more
>clearly the government's responsibility in adhering to environmental
>laws when granting or refusing planning permission."
>
>The case against the development, which is expected to have
>"far-reaching consequences for the protection of the fragile
>Caribbean environment," has the support of Richard Branson, head of
>the Virgin Group, who has paid for a team of barristers, led by the
>former chairman of the Bar Stephen Hockman QC, to fly to the group
>of islands and seek to stop plans to build a marina.
>
>Arguments in the case are expected to end today.
><http://repeatingislands.com/2009/04/29/landmark-environmental-case-in-the-brit\
ish-virgin-islands/>http://repeatingislands.com/2009/04/29/landmark-environmenta\
l-case-in-the-british-virgin-islands/
>


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
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[This posting from the FAO regional list provides
an interesting parallel to the problems of large
resorts as a form of MONOCULTURE -- from the
perspective of sustainable development. ]


>Date: Wed, 20 May 2009 11:25:30 -0400
>From: FAO-Carib-Agri <FAO-Carib-Agri@...>
>Subject: The Bahamas: Four Seasons resort 'tremendous challenge'
>To: LIST <carib-agri-l@...>
>
>FAO Carib-Agri is a service provided by the FAO Sub-Regional Office, Barbados
>===============================================================
>
>Perhaps List members would like to comment on
>how reduced tourist arrivals are affecting
>demand for domestic agricultural produce?  In
>cases where a major hotel located on a small
>island closes, demand for farmers produce falls
>substantially.  Also, former workers have less
>money to spend.
>
>Looking forward to receiving your messages!
>
>Michael
>
>===================================
>
>NASSAU, Bahamas - Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert
>Ingraham says the looming shutdown of a
>sprawling luxury resort poses a "tremendous
>challenge" to the tourism-dependent economy of
>Exuma, a central Bahamian district made up of
>scores of small islands.
>
>The Atlantic archipelago's Cabinet Office
>announced last week that the Four Seasons Resort
>Great Exuma at Emerald Bay, which opened in
>2003, will close May 26. Most of its 500 workers
>will be dismissed in coming days.
>
>The Toronto-based Four Seasons resort is part of
>a 200-hectare development that includes a marina
>and Greg Norman-designed golf course.
>
>In June 2007, the owner of the master
>development, EBR Holdings Ltd., was unable to
>meet its debt obligations and it was placed into
>receivership.
>
>Receivers have notified the government that
>talks with various investors that previously
>signalled an interest in taking over the
>development were under way, but far from
>complete.
>
>Toronto-based Four Seasons has said it has
>agreed to an orderly closure and "it is unlikely
>that the hotel will reopen as a Four Seasons."
>
>On Monday, Ingraham told legislators the closure
>"presents a tremendous challenge for the economy
>of Exuma," and that the government is helping
>"identify the best investor group to acquire and
>reopen the hotel, golf course and marina."
>
>The islands' economy is reeling from a steep
>decline in visitors from the United States.
>
>Other big Bahamas resorts have recently
>announced layoffs or reduced workers' hours as
>the world economic crisis slashes tourism.
>
>The government will provide the laid-off workers
>with counselling, job training and career
>planning, Ingraham said.
>
>Copyright © 2009 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
>
><http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5g24utbC7-m_njYkm1\
Lp72p4LxhFg>http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5g24utbC\
7-m_njYkm1Lp72p4LxhFg


--
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        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
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        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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Follow the link to our Island Resources Blog
http://irf.org/wordpress/ for an article (On Golf Courses, Sensors
Help Save Water) from the New York Times about new technologies that
can drastically reduce overall water use, and the discharge of
surface pollutants FROM GOLF COURSES. This is a special problem for
golf courses in tropical areas, and these moderately priced
technologies should be considered as a standard requirement for
project approval.

Bruce Potter


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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[Last week we passed on an article with information about new
water-saving technologies that probably ought to be required for any
new GOLF COURSE development in the insular Caribbean (and lots of
other places).

THIS ARTICLE suggests that if a developer is proposing a GOLF RESORT
development, he may be so stupid that you don't want him in the first
place. From the Sunday New York Times BUSINESS section
<http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/24/business/24golf.html?_r=1&sq=golf%20resorts&s\
t=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=print>

bruce potter]


This copy is for your personal, noncommercial use only.

May 24, 2009

It's Tee Time. Where Is Everybody?

By GERALDINE FABRIKANT

Montverde, Fla.

OFF the turnpike here in central Florida, hidden behind stucco walls,
sits a sprawling Tuscan-style clubhouse on a hill overlooking a
string of lakes, a golf course and green fields.

This 1,900-acre property, called Bella Collina, was designed to hold
800 homes. Today, only 48 houses dot the landscape, and just three
are occupied. The clubhouse, though open, is eerily quiet, and a
promised swimming pool and equestrian center have yet to be built.

Bella Collina, the brainchild of Robert Edward Ginn III, looks like a
ghost town. So does Tesoro, another resort opened by Mr. Ginn near
Port St. Lucie, where just 150 houses sit on 900 lots. And the
Conservatory in Palm Coast, also from Mr. Ginn, is even more barren:
335 out of 340 lots are empty.

As the real estate boom expanded in recent years, developers and home
buyers believed that residential golf resorts were a sure-fire bet.
Many buyers looked to buy properties that they could flip for a quick
profit. Others were lured by stunning views, club services and
security. While there is no reliable data on the growth in
residential golf resorts, analysts say the market is well past its
peak - particularly in the Sun Belt - and there is now an
overabundance of developments.

"The aggressive building of new resort courses continued from the
mid-1990s into the 2000s, contributing to an increasing glut of
inventory that finally found no market," said Joe Beditz, chief
executive of the National Golf Foundation, a trade group that tracks
data on the golf industry.

Mr. Ginn, 60, was able to cash in on the boom despite a spotty record
that included some well-publicized failures on Hilton Head Island,
S.C., in the 1980s. But when the real estate market began to tank in
2007, his empire came undone. "As property values plummeted, many
investors had property worth less than their loans, and they were
unprepared to pay their club and association fees," says Toby Tobin,
a Florida real estate agent.

Other golf resorts are also struggling. WCI Communities, which built
resorts in Florida, Virginia and the Northeast, filed for bankruptcy
in August. So did the Yellowstone Club in Big Sky, Mont., and three
other resorts that, like some of Mr. Ginn's, had loans arranged by
Credit Suisse. Even the venerable Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia
has sought bankruptcy protection.

For Mr. Ginn, a man who could sell 400 lots in a single day during
the height of the real estate boom, it has been a huge comedown.
While other developers may have built more golf resorts, few did so
as grandly or as extravagantly. The tab for the 116,000- square-foot
clubhouse at Tesoro reached $48 million.

"Most developers used consultants," recalled Dean Adler, co-founder
of Lubert-Adler Partners, a private equity firm in Philadelphia that
invested in Mr. Ginn's projects. "Bobby had a feel. He could be
handed a topography map at a site and sketch out the entire resort."

An amiable Southerner with a casual personal style, Mr. Ginn was a
virtuoso at selling investors his vision of the luxe lifestyle.

"Bobby is very smooth and very likable," said Hilton Wiener, a lawyer
who bought an investment property at Tesoro. "He is a down-home guy
who is not a pushy kind of salesperson."

But when a new resort was in the works, Mr. Ginn knew how to generate
a buying frenzy by holding lavish parties where potential buyers
greatly outnumbered available lots, say agents and investors who
attended the events.

"You would come to one of Ginn's sales weekends and you would be
drinking and thinking, 'I hope I get chosen as one of the select few
who gets to buy a lot,' " Mr. Wiener recalled. "The setting is very
lush: hand-rolled cigars, fancy parties, vans with the Ginn name
plastered on them."

The high times ended when the market turned two years ago. Sales
stalled, and Mr. Ginn had trouble paying off loans. Two of his
properties, Tesoro and Quail West in Naples, Fla., filed for
bankruptcy in December 2008 and were later sold for a fraction of
what he had put into them. He sold Laurelmor, a resort in North
Carolina, to another developer for $32 million. Mr. Ginn's network of
companies still owns the facilities at Bella Collina and the
Conservatory.

Not all of Mr. Ginn's 13 golf resorts are in such dire straits. But
even at some of the most successful, like Reunion near Orlando, the
Ginn Companies is considering programs to attract more buyers by
offering fractional ownership at lower prices.

Mr. Ginn says his remaining properties will eventually pay off. "My
belief is that when the depression ends, there will be a pent-up
demand for happiness," he said in an interview at his offices at the
Hammock Beach Resort near Daytona Beach. "Sometime between 2035 or
2040, Florida will double in size."

In the meantime, he faces dozens of lawsuits from angry investors
alleging that his companies used deceptive and misleading trade
practices in representing the demand for and value of his properties.
"We will vigorously defend against these false allegations," Mr. Ginn
said.

BOBBY GINN grew up in Hampton, S.C., where his father was a small
homebuilder. "I dropped out of school when I was 19 to go into the
business because I always had a passion for building," he said.

When Mr. Ginn was in his 30s, he worked with the Butcher brothers,
Jake and C. H. Jr., Tennessee bankers who went to prison for bank
fraud. In 1986, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation sued Mr.
Ginn, contending that he had participated in a scheme with the
brothers to defraud banks under the pretense of developing a property
in that state. Mr. Ginn said he settled with the F.D.I.C. in the
early 1990s and paid $500,000, without admitting wrongdoing. An
F.D.I.C spokesman said the agency did not have documents from that
period detailed enough to confirm Mr. Ginn's account.

In 1985, he bought several resort and residential developments on
Hilton Head Island, including such landmarks as the golf course where
the Heritage Classic was played. "I liked the resort business more
than building condos and shopping centers," Mr. Ginn said. "Selling
fun is more enjoyable."

But his Hilton Head project did not prove to be a good investment.
Some critics argue that he took on too much debt. As his cash-flow
problems grew, a local radio station carried bulletins announcing
when Ginn employees could safely cash paychecks and bumper stickers
began appearing that said: "Honk if Bobby Owes You."

Mr. Ginn sold his Hilton Head assets in 1986 to pay off debts, and
declared personal bankruptcy two years later.

He resuscitated his career by working for Rochester Community Savings
Bank in New York as a consultant on its investment in Wild Dunes, a
North Carolina resort.

He got a big break in 1997, when Lubert-Adler started investing in
his projects. Over the next decade, the firm, whose investors include
the endowments for Harvard and Princeton, pumped about $800 million
into his properties. Their partnership was structured such that the
private equity firm put up all the money and took 80 percent of the
profits.

The timing of the relationship couldn't have been better. "Their
business really took off after Sept. 11, when people turned from
financial investments to hard assets," said Robert Gidel, a former
president of the Ginn Companies.

Mr. Ginn's development style was unusual: he didn't build clubhouses
or other services until a large number of lots were sold. "Typically,
developers start with a hotel or amenities because skeptical buyers
want to see things," Mr. Gidel said. "But here the market was so
strong, and people wanted to believe."

Dan Gerner, who owned a home in Quail West, one of the few developed
properties that Mr. Ginn bought, said Mr. Ginn's lavish spending
ornamented his operation with all the trappings of success. At Quail
West, Mr. Gerner said, Mr. Ginn "spent $12 million remodeling the
clubhouse, and when the members didn't like it, he spent $4 million
more changing it."

Many buyers bought several properties and hoped to flip them for a profit.

Even Mr. Adler, the Lubert-Adler chief, was personally involved in at
least one deal at Tesoro. According to property records, he bought a
parcel in 2004 and quickly sold it for a $205,000 profit.

A partnership formed by Mr. Adler and Mr. Ginn, A & G, also bought
and sold five properties at Bella Collina for a $2.5 million profit
over a period of weeks.

Those transactions raised possible conflict-of-interest questions,
experts in private equity say, because the partnership bought
property in developments that were also assets held by private equity
funds that Mr. Adler was helping to oversee. Steven N. Kaplan, a
professor of finance at the University of Chicago, said that
transactions such as this can be problematic because investors in a
fund are deprived of profits that potentially accrue to insiders who
buy assets for themselves.

Mr. Adler says that although he bought the single property at Tesoro
in his own name, he had actually "made a loan to two individuals to
purchase that property." He said that they - not he - kept the
profits from the transaction and that they repaid him with interest.

As for the five properties purchased by A & G, Mr. Adler said the
situation was "rectified."

"I transferred my investment back to Mr. Ginn and never participated
or received a penny of profit," he said. Mr. Ginn confirmed Mr.
Adler's account.

The A & G deals are cited in a class-action suit filed last week in
federal district court in Florida, alleging a scheme to sell
properties based on fraudulent appraisals. Although Mr. Adler and Mr.
Ginn are cited in the case, their firms, and not they as individuals,
are named as defendants. Mr. Adler said he was no longer a partner in
A & G when the transactions took place and denied any wrongdoing. Mr.
Ginn said he had not seen the suit but also denied allegations of
wrongdoing.

In 2006, Mr. Ginn's partnership with Lubert-Adler borrowed $675
million from Credit Suisse, out of which it took a distribution of
$332 million. (Mr. Adler said that his firm put back roughly that
amount after sales slowed.) The partnership used the balance of the
Credit Suisse loan to finance four resorts.

But the next year, the real estate market began to enter a free fall,
and by 2008 the partnership couldn't make payments on the Credit
Suisse loan. Tesoro and Quail West filed for bankruptcy, and
Laurelmor was sold. "There were no buyers and no market," Mr. Tobin
said.

Mr. Ginn says he now faces about 30 lawsuits.

According to one filed in a Florida circuit court, buyers were
required to turn over their power of attorney to Richard T. Davis, a
partner in a law firm that represented several Ginn companies, in
order to buy land in Tesoro. The suit alleges that Mr. Davis signed
documents that never provided detailed disclosures about costs, as
the government requires. Since Mr. Davis was the companies' closing
agent, the suit contends, he knew that the disclosures were
incomplete.

"I assure you that we tried to disclose everything that was out
there," Mr. Ginn said. Mr. Davis's lawyer said the allegations were
without merit.

The Florida suit also alleges that Mr. Ginn worked to artificially
inflate the prices of parcels in his development. In one case,
according to the lawsuit, a buyer bought two properties for a total
of $1.007 million, and Mr. Ginn's title company recorded the
respective sale prices as $1.007 million and $1. The company then
used the larger price as a "comparable" figure in an appraisal for
Roy Bridges, a British financial adviser who bought a property for
$1.195 million, according to appraisal records. Mr. Bridges's
property is now in foreclosure.

Mr. Ginn contends that "the county recorded it incorrectly."

According to a transcript of a video obtained by a law firm
representing property owners in the suit, a Ginn salesman told a
group of potential buyers at Bella Collina that "Lot 5 sold for $2.1
million this morning." But property records showed that the parcel
sold for just $416,900, according to the lawsuit.

Mr. Ginn said he was "shocked because the salesman deviated from
company practices."

MR. GINN'S partnership with Lubert-Adler still has three properties
left to develop and owns some land at existing resorts. "At this
point, we have invested more than we have distributed back to
investors," Mr. Adler said. "We got hit by the economic tsunami, and
we did not anticipate how tough it would be."

Mr. Ginn says he is "ready to sell properties in trophy locations"
when the market turns around.

"If you can't sell," he said, "you die."

Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company

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        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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Ufi Ibrahim, Chief Operations Officer of the World Tourism and Travel
Council (WTTC) provides a direct link to the WTTC sponsored report

>Date: Sun, 31 May 2009 15:25:06 +0000 (GMT)
>From: Ufi Ibrahim <wttcvp@...>
>Subject: Re: Fw: Commitments and additional media coverage of the
>Coral Triangle Summit
>To: "Bruce Potter, IRF" <brucepotter1942@...>

>Dear Bruce
>
>Thank you for your email. I have sent the link to Susi and asked for
>her assistance in sharing the link with everyone. If you do not
>receive this email, then please go to
>
><http://www.wttc.org/eng/Tourism_Initiatives/Environment_Initiative/>http://www\
.wttc.org/eng/Tourism_Initiatives/Environment_Initiative/
>
>from where you can download the report.
>
>I look forward to your feedback on the report.
>
>Kind regards
>
>Ufi
>
>Ufi Ibrahim
>Chief Operations Officer
>World Travel & Tourism Council
>Tel: +44 (0)207 481 8007
>Mobile: +44 (0) 777 593 6385
>Email: <mailto:ufi.ibrahim@...>ufi.ibrahim@...
>           <mailto:wttcvp@...>wttcvp@...
>
>
>
>From: "Bruce Potter, IRF" <brucepotter1942@...>
>To: Ufi Ibrahim <wttcvp@...>
>Sent: Friday, 22 May, 2009 15:33:32
>Subject: Re: Fw: Commitments and additional media coverage of the
>Coral Triangle Summit
>
>Ufi -- good news indeed . . .
>
>It would be good to see the WTTC to set up some best practices, such
>as the water saving technologies described in the article referenced
>below:
>
>(Note that your attachment is a bit over 5 megabytes which is much
>too big to be accepted by most of the Internet Service Providers for
>the Caribbean islands where we do most of our messaging.)
>
>At 10:29 AM -0400 5/22/09, Potter at Island Resources wrote:
>
>>
>>Follow the link to our Island Resources Blog
>><http://irf.org/wordpress/>http://irf.org/wordpress/ for an article
>>(On Golf Courses, Sensors
>>Help Save Water) from the New York Times about new technologies that
>>can drastically reduce overall water use, and the discharge of
>>surface pollutants FROM GOLF COURSES. This is a special problem for
>>golf courses in tropical areas, and these moderately priced
>>technologies should be considered as a standard requirement for
>>project approval.
>>
>>Bruce Potter
>>
>
>
>
>
>At 10:50 AM +0000 5/22/09, Ufi Ibrahim wrote:
>
>>Dear Suzi and GLISPA Members
>>
>>This is excellent news. Congratulations to everyone involved in
>>facilitating the commitment of Indonesia and the other states.
>>
>>I wanted to share with you all the work of the World Travel &
>>Tourism Council (WTTC) on Climate Change. We recently launched the
>>attached 'Leading the challenge on Climate Change' report setting
>>out ten actions which will make a progressive difference to efforts
>>tackling climate change. These are based on an industry aspiration
>>to reduce total CO2 emissions by 2035 by no less than 50% from
>>their 2005 levels. It sets an interim target of reducing CO2
>>emissions by 30% by 2020, assuming there is an international
>>agreement on global emission reduction, or by 25% by 2020 in the
>>absence of such an agreement.
>>
>>I am now leading a major effort at WTTC to gather case studies from
>>destinations, as well as Travel & Tourism companies, to share best
>>practice in tackling climate change and environmental protection
>>across the world. I would like to learn more about the efforts of
>>Indonesia and other countries in this regard. Would you be able to
>>share this with me? Also, I welcome the input of other GLISPA
>>colleagues in pointing toward case studies of exemplary practice,
>>so that we may help to share this with the 220 million people
>>employed by Travel & Tourism worldwide.
>>
>>I look forward to hearing from you all.
>>
>>Kind regards,
>>
>>Ufi Ibrahim
>>Chief Operations Officer
>>World Travel & Tourism Council
>>Tel: +44 (0)207 481 8007
>>
>>Mobile: +44 (0) 777 593 6385
>>Email: <mailto:ufi.ibrahim@...>ufi.ibrahim@...
>>           <mailto:wttcvp@...>wttcvp@...
>>
>>
>>Sent: Friday, 22 May, 2009 8:04:25
>>Subject: Commitments and additional media coverage of the Coral
>>Triangle Summit
>>
>>Dear GLISPA colleagues,
>>
>>The commitments by the six Coral Triangle countries (Indonesia,
>>Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste)
>>during the Coral Triangle Initiative Summit in Manado last week are
>>unprecedented and truly inspiring. As GLISPA, we couldn't be more
>>pleased that the initial announcement by the President of Indonesia to
>>work with its neighbouring countries on marine conservation -- made at
>>the same GLISPA High Level Event at COP8 in Curitiba that saw the launch
>>of the Micronesia Challenge and the establishment of the Phoenix Islands
>>Protected Area, now the largest MPA in the world -- has developed into
>>this extraordinary set of actions (see list below)
>>
>>Here's some additional details of the Summit:
>>
>>*
>>     Good summary of the CTI Summit by the Jakarta Post at
>><http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/may2009/2009-05-15-02.asp>http://www.ens-news\
wire.com/ens/may2009/2009-05-15-02.asp
>>*
>>     Earth Negotiation Bulletin summany of the CTI Summit (attached)
>>*
>>     Summary of the whole World Ocean Conference and the CTI Summit
>>at <http://www.iisd.ca/oceans/woc2009/>http://www.iisd.ca/oceans/woc2009/
>><<http://www.iisd.ca/oceans/woc2009/>http://www.iisd.ca/oceans/woc2009/>
>>
>>Commitments made by individual governments and partners at the CTI
>>Summit include:
>>
>>*    Indonesia launched the Savu Sea Marine National Park - the
>>
>>largest marine protected areas in the Coral Triangle - covering 8.649
>>million acres and reaching their target of over 33 million acres,
>>exceeding the goal of 24.7 million acres (10 million hectares). They set
>>a new goal of almost 50 million acres and to effectively manage all
>>existing MPAs.
>>
>>*    Indonesia and the Philippines each have committed $5 million in
>>financial aid towards regional action. Papua New Guinea committed $2
>>million and Malaysia committed $1 million.
>>
>>*    Australia committed to more than $2 million in immediate funding
>>for critical projects in the Coral Triangle - the first phase in an
>>ongoing plan to support the CTI.
>>
>>*    Through NOAA, the United States announced $1.6 million for
>>capacity building
>>
>>*    And seven new partners committed to support the Coral Triangle
>>Initiative, including France, Association of Southeast Asian Nations,
>>IUCN, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Development
>>Programme.
>>
>>These announcements are in addition to the over $100 million in
>>multi-year grants from donor agencies given in recent months that
>>directly support implementation of the Coral Triangle Initiative,
>>including $63 million from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), $2
>>million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), $40 million from the U.S.
>>government and 2mil Euros from the German government. An additional $300
>>million of grant and loan projects also support aspects of the Coral
>>Triangle Initiative and are part of the co-financing package for the GEF
>>Grant.
>>
>>Leaders of the six governments of the Coral Triangle countries will
>>collectively and individually commit to five over-arching goals and a
>>set of ten targets:
>>
>>Goal #1: Priority Seascapes (large marine areas) designated and
>>effectively managed
>>
>>*    By 2012: "Priority Seascapes" designated, with investment plans
>>completed and sequenced
>>*    By 2020: Marine and coastal resources within all "Priority
>>Seascapes" are being sustainably managed
>>
>>Goal #2: Ecosystem approach to management of fisheries (EAFM) and other
>>marine resources fully applied
>>
>>*    By 2012: Strong legislative, policy and regulatory frameworks in
>>place for achieving an ecosystem approach to fisheries management
>>*    By 2020: Improved income, livelihoods and food security in an
>>increasingly significant number of coastal communities across the region
>>through a new Sustainable Coastal Fisheries and Poverty Reduction
>>Initiative
>>*    By 2020: Effective measures in place to help ensure exploitation
>>of shared tuna stocks is sustainable, with tuna spawning areas and
>>juvenile growth stages adequately protected
>>*    By 2020: A more effective management and more sustainable trade
>>in live-reef fish and reef-based ornamentals achieved
>>
>>Goal #3: Marine protected areas (MPAs) established and effectively
>>managed
>>
>>*    By 2020: Region-wide Coral Triangle MPA System (CTMPAS) in place
>>and fully functional
>>
>>Goal #4: Climate change adaptation measures achieved
>>
>>*    By 2015: Region-wide Early Action Plan for Climate Change
>>Adaption for the near-shore marine and coastal environment and small
>>islands ecosystems developed and implemented
>>*    By 2013: Networked National Centers of Excellence on Climate
>>Change Adaptation for marine and coastal environments are established
>>and in full operation
>>
>>Goal #5: Threatened species status improving
>>
>>*    By 2020: Improved status of sharks, sea turtles, seabirds,
>>marine mammals corals, seagrass, mangroves and other identified
>>threatened species
>>

--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
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-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
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-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

[Now that attachments are more often processed by yahoogroups,
thought members of this group would appreciate this article by Dr.
McElroy, long term associate of Island Resources Foundation. . .  bp]

>Date: Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:18:21 -0400
>From: Jerry McElroy <jmcelroy@...>
>To: Bruce Potter <bpotter@...>
>Subject: Article on Supply Determinants of Small Island Tourism
>
>Bruce,
>
>I have attached a recent article that came out in the Caribbean
>Journal of Tourism Research. The paper copy isn't available just yet
>but this is an electronic copy.  It reviews my latest work on the
>SITE model.
>
>All the best-----Jerry
>
>
>
>


--
--
        35 Years of Environmental Service to Small Tropical Islands
--
        Island Resources Foundation   Fone 202/265-9712
        1718 "P" St NW, # T-4   fax 202/232-0748
        Washington, DC 20036   Potter cell: 1-443-454-9044
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
-- -- -- -- -
Subscribe to environmental e-mail groups at
<http://www.irf.org/help/email.php >
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Blogs at http://pottersweal.wordpress.com/; twitter: brucepotter
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
   ----------

begin:vcard
fn:Jerome McElroy
n:McElroy;Jerome
org:Saint Mary's College;Business and Economics
adr:;;363 Spes Unica Hall;Notre Dame;IN;46556;USA
email;internet:jmcelroy@...
title:Professor of Economics
tel;work:574-284-4488
tel;fax:574-284-4566
tel;home:574-234-2827
x-mozilla-html:FALSE
url:http://www.saintmarys.edu/~jmcelroy/
version:2.1
end:vcard



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the sustainable-tourism
group.

   File        : /Supply Determinants_13-22.pdf
   Uploaded by : bpotter1942 <bpotter@...>
   Description : Analysis of key indicators of tourism impacts or penetration for
many small islands

You can access this file at the URL:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sustainable-tourism/files/Supply%20Determinants_13\
-22.pdf

To learn more about file sharing for your group, please visit:
http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/groups/original/members/web/index.htmlfiles

Regards,

bpotter1942 <bpotter@...>

From the Trinidad Express 10 June.

A very interesting article that could boost tourism in Nevis towards  carbon
neutrality.

Taking the lead in alternative power
By Raffique Shah

Wednesday, June 10th 2009



The tiny island of Nevis, at just 93 square miles, has taken a giant leap in
generating electrical power, setting the stage for a shift in the energy
paradigm for its OECS neighbours.

On April 27, the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) signed a contract with West
Indies Power (Nevis) Ltd (WIP) to establish a geothermal power plant.

At a ceremony in the capital city Charlestown, hundreds of residents witnessed
the Nevis Electricity Company Ltd sign a power purchase agreement with WIP.

The first phase of the project will see a 10MW single flash plant that will
supply all of the electrical needs of Nevis, an island that depends heavily on
tourism, hence a reliable electricity supply.

Kerry McDonald, chief executive of the Curacao-based WIP, communicating with the
Business Express, said: "The power plant will be in operation in mid-2010. It
will cost US$45 million. This project will be financed by the Export Import Bank
of the United States."
Nevis Minister Carlisle Powell, right, signs the geothermal contract on behalf
of the Nevis Island Administration with other WIP and Nevis Administration
officials looking on.

He added that his company drilled three slim holes on Nevis since 2007.

These holes discovered a three-mile long by three-mile wide geothermal reservoir
that is estimated to be able to produce 400MW of electricity.

NIA Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment Carlisle Powell said he
was satisfied that the NIA negotiated "a good deal for all the people of Nevis",
and gave the assurance that the thrust into renewable energy would continue.

His assurance follows a statement by St Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr Denzil
Douglas at an FAO meeting in Rome in June 2008.

There, Dr Douglas told delegates: "The development of bio-energy and other
alternative forms are of critical importance to St Kitts and Nevis."

He said his government has given approval in principle for a biomass (cane
grass) project as well as the establishment of a wind farm.

Douglas said: "Much attention is currently being paid to the development of a
geothermal project for electricity generation while the use of solar energy is
also under active consideration."

Justifying the geothermal project, Minister Powell told residents: "The fuel
surcharge is now at 15 cents (EC) per kilowatt hour. This is the lowest it has
ever been. But when the fuel surcharge bit into the pockets of poor ordinary
Nevisians, this government turned to geothermal and wind energy in an effort at
reducing the hardships caused by this increasing cost of energy."

Powell noted that a United States Department of Energy Study in 1998 suggested
that Nevis had the potential to provide geothermal energy.

He said the government realised the huge economic impact that the successful
harnessing of geothermal energy could have on the lives of Nevisians and the
Treasury and embarked on an aggressive venture to make it a reality. He said the
administration was not deterred by criticism and in January 23, 2007, WIP was
granted a licence to explore. WIP's McDonald said the second phase of the
project is to install a 40MW single flash plant to supply St Kitts with its
electrical needs. The plant will supply the electricity to St Kitts via a
two-mile submarine electrical transmission cable by 2011. WIP is also in
negotiations to supply the USVI, the BVI, and Puerto Rico with electrical power
from Nevis, also via submarine electrical transmission cables. The company also
has licences to develop geothermal resources on the islands of Dominica, Saba
and St Vincent. It is currently conducting exploration activities on these
islands. James Post, a former electronics executive and campaigner for "green
energy" who is based in Grenada, explains geothermal energy this way: "Earth
core temperature is approximately 9,000 degrees Fahrenheit and gradually reduces
in temperature closer to the surfaces. Rainwater that seeps in deeper parts of
the earth gets hot and is called a geothermal source. In some parts of the world
this water finds its way back to the surface via cracks and faults, such as
geysers (in Iceland) and hot springs. As with solar energy, the issue is how to
tap that virtually unlimited source of green energy. In most cases the trick is
to drill to find and get access to the geothermal source. "The hot water can
then be used both directly and in geothermal power plants, which consists of
three varieties. Steam can directly be used to generate electricity with a dry
steam generator. Water between 300-700 degrees Fahrenheit can be used in a flash
power plant, where hot water is flashed into steam. The used water is fed back
into the source for reheating. It is renewable in a sense, as the available heat
capacity has its limits. Currently, the worldwide capacity of geothermal power
plants is over 9,000 MW. The energy cost of 'easy access' geothermal energy
power plants is comparable to wind energy." Guadeloupe is the only Caribbean
island that has a geothermal plant since 1984-a 4MW plant. Explorations have
shown encouraging results in Dominica, Montserrat and St Lucia. Meanwhile, wind
and solar power are also being explored elsewhere in the Caribbean. In 2007 Post
installed the first power-generating windmill to service the Paradise Bay resort
in Grenada, which he owns. Post said he "designed an intelligent control system
that further increases the wind penetration by switching noncritical loads (such
as water heaters) in function of the available wind. This can bring the wind
penetration to an astonishing 90 per cent." Post explains: "In the Caribbean, PV
solar systems are already getting close to the cost of generating electricity
from fossil sources because of the intense sunshine and the high cost of diesel.
The solar water heater produces abundant hot water and the installed cost can be
as low as US$800 for a 50-gallon system. In many cases they pay for themselves
in two to three years." Post, a Dutch national who now lives in Grenada where he
operates the Paradise Bay Resort, has put his money where his mouth is. His
18-room resort and allied facilities are fully powered by an 80KW windmill that
feeds excess power to Grenada's main electricity grid. Post told the Business
Express recently that refurbished windmills from countries (mainly in Europe)
that are upgrading their wind-power systems, are available at reasonable cost
for use in islands like those of the OECS, where the electricity costs are high.
"These systems can also be used in remote areas in energy-rich countries like
Trinidad you escape having to run miles of power lines. Bear in mind the cost of
electricity, even in countries like T&T, will rise in the future. With wind
power there is an initial capital cost with little maintenance during its life
span, which is usually around 25 years."