Zeavola Environmental Respect

The Phi Phi Islands: a potted history of the area and the islands.

The Andaman coast formed over 200 million years ago.  The sea levels were 300 metres higher than they are now, and the limestone karsts seen around this region are moulded from trillions upon trillions of small marine creatures – namely corals, crustaceans and other fossilised critters.  Limestone is relatively soft, hence the forever-changing scenery and towering castles in the sea. The islands are a small cluster of spectacular karsts that fall within the province of Krabi.  Koh Phi Phi Don is by far the largest island and is inhabited by approximately 3000 people whose past was not reported in history books until the late 1940’s when nomadic fishermen began to plant their roots, or at least their fishing boats, to take advantage of the flourishing virgin sea life. 

Koh Phi Phi Don has changed face a couple of times in recent years, firstly by becoming a coconut plantation, then followed in the early noughties by gaining a reputation as a tourist bucket-list destination following the making of the celebrated film ‘The Beach’ on neighbouring Koh Phi PhiLeh.  However, destruction to the once glorious Maya Bay has been caused by thousands of day-trippers, litter, pollution and boat damage and marine experts suggest that 80% of the coral reefs surrounding this bay have suffered mass destruction.  As a result, Maya Bay has, thankfully, now closed indefinitely, and tourists are no longer permitted to step foot on this section of the island, allowing its spectacular nature and ecosystem to recover. Indeed, within months of closing, reef sharks are again in abundance.  The closure is excellent news for residents of Zeavola, as peace reigns once more; it is back to nature and barefoot luxury.  Guests of the resort can take a boat to the protected perimeter of the bay, where they will be able to capture the Instagram photo of a lifetime: ‘The Beach’ as seen by Leonardo DiCaprio in the famous film from 2000.

To continue in this vein of protection, Zeavola and the team needs to harness nature so that we don’t take too much away from her.  

Our environmental sustainability objectives aim to:

• Reduce energy consumption through the implementation of energy efficient devices in all aspects of the operation
• Reduce wastewater consumption by improving on the education of consumption, and improve on wastewater treatments throughout the resort
• Not using any saline water directly from the sea or introducing any overflow water directly back into the sea
• To continue to improve on the reduction of single use packaging for products used within the hotel, particularly non-biodegradable products
• To continue to recycle materials where possible
• A composting cycle is introduced so that all organic waste will be re-purposed as a rich fertiliser for the plants and trees on the resort
• 100% of all possible trimmings of plants are to be shredded, mulched and used as jungle plant food, eliminating the need for incinerating rubbish
• Implement the Enviroswim natural pool water systems to the pool villas
• #StopSucking is a social media challenge that asks individuals, organisations, and brands to pledge a commitment to stop the use of plastic straws
• Alexandre Tsuk, the founder of RefillMyBottle, visited Zeavola and is the inspiration behind the water filling stations across the resort.  Guests and outside visitors are invited to refill their water bottles on a complimentary basis
• Successful implementation of reusable glass bottles in each of the guest bedrooms, reducing the use of single-use plastic bottles by over 120,000 per year
• A complex reverse osmosis water system has been developed to ensure all wastewater is reused in the jungle gardens.  The water is so clean that fish reside in the pond
• The wastewater is tested regularly  for purity at the University of Songkla (Phuket Campus)
• Installation of energy saving lightbulbs in guest rooms, gardens, public places and offices:and there is a movement  sensor control in public areas
• Laundry water has a filtration cleaning system which saves over 1.4 million litres of water per year

The team members play a crucial role in the sustainability of Zeavola

• Each team member has been given an environmentally friendly canvas bag for all of their shopping needs
• Team members have also received metal drinking cups.  They can refill these in any of the water refill stations throughout the resort, back-of-house or their living areas
• The executive chef, his team and the purchasing department work closely with local suppliers to reduce or eliminate plastic wrapping for food delivery
• The hotel has purchased numerous baskets to transport food thus removing the need for plastic wrapping
• The hotel has also purchase reusable ice-boxes to reduce the need for Styrofoam boxes for the transportation of perishable goods
• The executive chef has reduced oil usage by 40% to avoid heavy wastage 

Hazardous material

• All Gasoline containers are stored in a secure safety unit  
• Under the guidelines of the Thai Government, all hazardous materials are collected and disposed of according to Thai law in appropriate facilities