Aore Island is one of the most beautiful places in the world and we are passionate about keeping it this way. We are not just paying lip service to the philosophy of sustainability; we have made real decisions to the setting up of the resort to significantly reduce our impact on the environment.
Upon setting up, we immediately undertook a sustainability analysis of the island to determine the population of guests and staff the resort could reasonably sustain on a long-term basis. A particular emphasis was placed on water resources, power consumption and waste management and recycling.
The major result of our analysis has been the reduction in the number of guests our villa can accommodate, & how many staff we need to operate. The benefits are twofold, the consumption of resources has been significantly reduced and our guests share the island with fewer people, further enhancing the feeling of privacy and seclusion for which Aore is renowned.
Some of our sustainability initiatives are detailed below:
- Off Grid Solar Power
- Rainwater catchment
- environmentally friendly sewerage management
- onsite vegetable gardens ,fruit trees and free range chickens
- recycling of waste rubbish
- replanting of native trees and noxious weed removal
- building of sea retaining walls to stop erosion
- use of Yamaha 4 stroke Eco friendly outboard engines
We have only employed Local Ni-Van Staff from Aore and Santo. And we have undertaken training programs with them that not only are for their work positions with us, but will give them added skills if they ever decide to venture out for further employment opportunities. We have also helped them with their local villages and land acquisitions where possible.
Education programs have been implemented for water collection, waste management and sanitisation in their local communities as well.
A new state of the art off-grid hybrid solar system coupled with a 2900ah battery bank and a back-up generator. Diesel consumption at the resort is minimal as a direct result of the new off-grid system and the associated use of electrical fittings and appliances with low power alternatives throughout the resort.
We source fresh water from the plentiful rainwater collected from the villa and associated buildings(100,000ltr of storage) , rather than producing water by a diesel-powered desalination plant. We also draw from a perennial freshwater spring on the island for outdoor use and to supplement water supplies during the drier months if needed. We promote water conservation to all staff, and guests and use water saving devices where we can.
The villa has its own individual hot water and gas cooking appliances using clean butane gas, reducing the energy requirements and pollutants for heating water and cooking substantially.
Waste production has been significantly reduced on the island. Firstly, the amount of waste arriving at the island has been reduced by giving preference to suppliers that do not use excessive packaging for their produce. All organic waste is composted for use on our island vegetable gardens, as are most cardboard products. A new treatment plant has been installed, with all treated effluent being dispersed underground through sand beds without any risk of contact with the ocean or fringing reefs
All laundering of linen is undertaken using bio degradable detergents reducing the risk of potential phosphates entering the adjoining ocean.
We have built a rock retaining wall along the front of the resort sea line to stop any future erosion and rejuvenate and stabilise the fore shore vegetation on our property. We have also eradicated all noxious weeds on the property and re planted with local flora.
Our vessel “Full Boar” is built to run economically and is powered by the latest generation Yamaha 4 stroke outboards that are rated to stringent environmental standards having minimal impact on the ocean. And we have also re-powered our transfer boat the “Ute” with the latest generation Yamaha 4 stroke outboard.
We have put down moorings on most of our dive sites to avoid damaging the reef and wrecks and will continue to add these as time progresses, where there are no moorings we anchor on sand . Divers are also educated on the history and preservation of all WWII sites including the SS President Coolidge, USS Tucker, Million Dollar Point and implement a “no take” policy from all wrecks and reef. We look forward to welcoming you to Espiritu Santo and aore Aore by sharing with you the natural beauty of the island and our philosophy of sustainability.
