As it is World Environment Day on June 5, World Oceans Day on June 8 and World Rainforest Day on June 22, this month we thought we would fill you in on some of our green work: the things we are doing at Royal Resorts to protect the environment and the Yucatan’s precious ecosystems and wildlife. They include eradicating plastic, recycling and supporting conservation projects.
• Saying good-bye to plastic
From straws and glasses in our restaurants to shopping bags in the stores and the Spa, we are eliminating plastic and replacing it with eco-friendly alternatives that are made from natural products and are completely biodegradable. Polystyrene is also being replaced by biodegradable containers.
• Recycling for a cause
All plastic, aluminum, glass and paper and cardboard trash generated at the resorts is separated and recycled. All garbage that can be recycled is sold to a local recycling company and the proceeds go to the Royal Resorts Foundation conservation and community causes.
Organic waste is used to make compost and we even recycle cooking oil used in the restaurant kitchens, selling it for use in a biofuel plant.
Partially used bars of soap are collected and donated to Tierra de Animales, a Cancun-based sanctuary for stray dogs and cats. Towels, sheets and mats that no longer meet the quality standards of the resorts but are still usable are donated to the Old Folks Home and Hospice in the Ciudad de la Alegría, local churches and women’s shelters. Others are given to Fauna Digna, an NGO that nurses injured wild animals and birds back to health before releasing them into the wild. Mammals such as raccoons, coatimundi, fox and birds including osprey, owls and even pelicans recover from their wounds on the towels that are often used as hammocks to give them support.
• Switching to eco-friendly products
The resort housekeeping and maintenance departments use eco friendly cleaning products, soaps, polishes and varnishes wherever possible. The washing up liquid, dishwasher soap and bathroom amenities in the villas are biodegradable. Ozone technology keeps the water clean in the swimming pools and the use of chlorine has been cut by 40 percent.
• Saving energy and water
From solar panels at The Royal Sands and high efficiency boilers and air-conditioning centrifuges that are heat exchangers used to preheat water in the machine house to LED lighting, energy-efficient technology is used at the resorts to reduce electricity consumption.
Water saving measures include using efficiency devices in bathrooms and campaigns with our guests to invite them to reuse towels and bed linens instead of requesting a daily change.
• Conservation
From sea turtle protection campaigns during the summer nesting season to reforestation and donations for conservation projects to protect the Yucatan Peninsula’s ecosystems and the wildlife that inhabits them, Royal Resorts supports conservation.
• Spreading the eco message
At Royal Resorts we want our staff to take the eco message home and help spread it through the community. They attend seminars and workshops during the year on topics ranging from recycling and plastic pollution to climate change, ocean conservation and developing sustainable cities.
