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UNIT 4: ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
• Hazardous materials, such as batteries, are shipped to the mainland
for recycling;
• All plant waste is fed into a high-powered chipper to create compost.
This is stored in large heaps to enable bacteria to heat the compost
and increase the rate at which it is converted to useful organic humus.
This takes about seven months. The compost is then used as a soil
enhancement in tree planting around the island and in the vegetable
garden.
MONITORING
Turtle Island has commissioned a full Environmental Audit, which
not only reports on what the Island is doing, but also makes
recommendations as to how improvements can be made to environmental
conduct. Regular updates to the original Audit act as benchmarks
for assessing every new project undertaken, and many of the
recommendations have now been implemented and absorbed into the
daily life on the Island.
TRAINING AND MOTIVATING EMPLOYEES
• Environmental awareness programmes and training are constantly
being developed to ensure that all staff understand the importance of
their surroundings;
• Environmental meetings take place on a daily basis, and a scheme
to award those staff who show the greatest initiative in regard to
environmental conduct is currently being implemented.
COMMUNICATION
SEA TURTLES
Between the coral reef and shore lies the
lagoon, a shallow but rich area of marine life.
In the “Blue Lagoon” facing the western side
of Turtle swim hawksbill turtles, green turtles
and manta rays. The staff of Turtle Island pay
local Fijian fishermen a fee for any sea turtles
delivered live. The shell is then scratched
by Turtle staff and so becomes valueless to
poachers and souvenir seekers. (No harm is
done to the turtles in this process; it is just
cosmetic.) These endangered turtles then have
more of a chance to survive. In deeper waters
cruise coral trout, swift barracuda, wahoo, mahi
mahi, dolphins, walu and the occasional pilot
whale and billfish.
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(Extract from brochure: “The Ecology and
Culture of Turtle Island”.)
• Guests are exposed to the Turtle’s ecological activities even before
setting foot on the Island though the resort’s promotional material, and
in most cases, arrive keen to learn more about their role in preserving
the environment. Accordingly, they are offered a tour of the island’s
ecological zones and are encouraged to read the Environmental Audit,
a copy of which is displayed in each bure.