Small Sacrifices Result in Big Changes to Benefit Planet and People

The
Green Dream:
Small Sacrifices Result in Big
Changes to Benefit Planet and People
Words and photographs by Clothilde le Coz
In Cambodia, “going green” can often mean cutting down a few
trees, building a wooden cottage and saying “I have an ecolodge”.
But to attract high-end travelers, you need to do the opposite. This
goes with time, management and investment. Fronting the Gulf of
Thailand, the Knai Bang Chatt resort is one of the first luxury resorts
to implement a real sustainability policy in Cambodia. Its CEO, Jef
Moons, explained how it works.
When it comes to travel, there is only so much a travel
operator can do to be environmentally friendly. As most
of the CO2 emissions created by travelers come from
them catching planes, travel operators are powerless
to completely reduce the carbon footprints of clients. In
seaside Kep, however, Knai Bang Chatt is adopting new
rules to break the mould.
“Will I get one more customer to Knai Bang Chatt
because I am so called ‘green’? Well, last time I checked,
no travel agent will send me extra customers because of
this. However, they will send extra customers because
Knai Bang Chatt now has a blue thumbprint marked
‘sustainable,’” Jef Moons, the resort’s CEO and the
mind behind the initiative, told Hospitality Insider.
Cambodia still has a lot to learn when it comes to
sustainable management. And to Moons, the key is to
look beyond labels and promises to invest in people. “It
is no use to invest in green technology if your team is not
ready to adjust their own mindset,” he says. And now,
after six months of daily work with his staff, he proudly
announces that the resort will have reduced its energy
consumption by 33 percent in January 2016. This, for
example, is the goal the U.N. set for the United States to
reach by 2030. “You cannot change a country. But if the
private sector looks in the mirror and starts to change
itself, it is a first step,” Moons says.
“ IN TIME, YOU WILL SEE
THE CHEF COMING TO THE
GARDENS TO CUT FRESH
HERBS AND VEGETABLES.
THIS IS FULLY ORGANIC FOOD,
FROM THE GARDEN TO THE
PLATE. “
Along with big ideas, this commitment also required a
few hundred thousand dollars. The resort is switching
all its lamps to LED lights, reducing the consumption
of each drastically from 75W to 2W. It has also created
a biological water treatment system to recycle all grey
water (water used in bathrooms, kitchen, garden etc),
which is now filtered and separated. A four-step septic
tank treatment and a final organic treatment is also in
place. The leftover sediment is not yet recycled but
according to Moons, it is minimal and disposed of via
the municipal dump. As a result of this treatment, all
the water in the rooms is fully treated and drinkable,
and visitors do not have to use plastic bottles anymore,
however, they are still provided “to ease the mindset of
some customers.”
Step by Step
Moreover, the resort is also using solar power, heat
exchangers, reductions, and other green technology, as
well as smart architecture that maximises local weather
patterns to increase natural ventilation and maximise
access to wind energy. A new building is under
construction to house staff and their families, reducing
the emissions of traveling to and from work. With its
green technology and management tools in place, Knai
Bang Chatt is looking at a total carbon reduction of 53
percent by December for the entire technical facility.
Also, with sensors being implemented on facilities such
as air conditioning and fans, the resort’s staff are learning
to monitor and manage their own consumption. As a
result, in the second week of November, their energy
consumption was halved.
“ THE PAPER, PLASTIC,
GLASS, CANS, OIL,
METAL... EVERYTHING
CAN BE SOLD. EVEN
OUR COOKING OIL CAN
BE BARTERED FOR BIODIESEL “
Name: Jef Moons
Company: Knai Bang Chatt Resort
Position: CEO
(In the near future, Knai Ban Chatt will enter the Green
Growth 2050 global certification program, which was
developed to intertwine the wants of travelers with the
environment’s often ignored needs.)
Feeling that his staff were ready to take their next
step in sustainability, a “green team” has been set up
to monitor the potential waste of energy for the whole
resort. Besides measuring consumption, they are
also learning to make compost for the resort’s floral,
vegetable and spice gardens. This, in fact, can be a
selling point to European travel agents. “In time, you
will see the Chef coming to the gardens to cut fresh
herbs and vegetables. This is fully organic food, from
the garden to the plate,” Moons explains. And the green
scene is spreading, with each involved staff member
getting a grounding in growing organic gardens. The
aim, of course, is to wipe out the use of chemicals, and
therefore create the right habitat to attract friendly insects
and ensure the correct Ph level and soil structure. Next
year, Moons even plans on starting a tree nursery to
improve the carbon footprint of the resort.
Earn it back When it comes to sustainability, recycling,
reducing and reusing are Moon’s favorite verbs. Not only
it is possible to save money by reducing consumption,
it is also possible to earn some out of recycling. “In
Cambodia, you have to do everything yourself. The
paper, plastics, glass, cans, oil, metal…everything can
be sold. Even our cooking oil can be bartered for Biodiesel,” he says. The recyclables are sold at recycling
shops in Kampot and the income they generate is used
to buy gasoline to make the trips. Inevitably, this initiative
translates into more work but Moons believes it’s all
worthwhile in the race to reduce. “We recycle and reuse
much more than this”, he explains. “Any linen or towel
that we cannot use anymore becomes another piece
of equipment for the kitchen, for example”, he says. “It
belongs now to our everyday life.”