Sustainable Programs

Our Commitment to Sustainable Tourism
 
At Aventuras Naturales, we believe that responsible tourism should benefit local communities and cultures, support conservation of ecosystems and include efforts to mitigate global warming and other environmental problems. We are working to limit the negative impact of our activities and to promote conservation and sustainable development in the areas our tours visit. Our sustainable tourism policy extends from our main office to our vehicles and warehouses, and to our remote Pacuare Lodge and surroundings. We have programs for recycling, reforestation, environmental education, and community development, among other things. The following are some of the steps we’ve taken to date:

 In Harmony With Nature

• Aventuras Naturales has purchased 260 hectares (642 acres) of primary rain forest along the Pacuare River – some of which was in danger of being cleared – in order to conserve the area’s wildlife and to offset the atmospheric carbon created by our vehicles.

Aventuras Naturales & Pacuare Lodge   leaded  the Ecological Blue Flag Program for the Pacuare River in conjunction with the A&A  , making this a pioneer project on a global level! On March 2009 the Pacuare River was awarded with a  Blue Flag, in recognition of its clean environment and we are in the process of obtaining the CST ( Certification for Sustainable Tourism).

As part of our commitment to environmental protection, Aventuras Naturales  & Pacuare Lodge supports jaguar research in its 260-hectare (642-acre) nature reserve led by Dr. Eduardo Carrillo, Director of the Wildlife Management Program at Costa Rica’s Universidad Nacional. 
The Pacuare Lodge provides food, lodging and logistical support for researchers and has donated dozens of digital cameras that they place on game trails in the forest to capture images of those endangered jungle cats. 

• We’ve begun reforesting former pastureland near the Pacuare River with native tree species to further offset carbon emissions and improve the ecological health of the Pacuare watershed.

• We have a recycling program that extends from our main office to our warehouses and our lodge. We use reusable plates, cups and cutlery during the lunch served on Pacuare River trips, instead of the disposable plates and cups used by other companies.

• Our Pacuare Lodge was built with a minimum impact on the nearby river and rainforest. No trees were cut to accommodate buildings, which were built using lumber from a reforestation project operated by small farmers. The traditional thatch roofs were made by Cabécar Indians who live in the area using palm leaves they collected in the surrounding forest.

• Water for the lodge’s showers is solar heated and bathrooms are equipped with biodegradable soap and shampoo. All the lodge’s wastewater flows into state-of-the-art septic systems to avoid pollution of the nearby river.

• Lanterns and candles provide light in bungalows and what little electricity we use at the lodge is clean energy generated by a turbine in a nearby stream.

• We use organic products for meals served on tours as much as possible.

 • On July 2008   Pacuare Lodge coordinated and supported the reintroduction of a troop of eight howler monkeys that had been stranded in a flood on a nearby island.  The new group has established itself and a new baby was born.

• In the company’s laundry, we conserve water and use only biodegradable detergents. All the laundry is rafted out every day to the our warehouse in Siquirres.

Socially Responsible Tourism

Sustainable tourism should improve the lives of local people, and we’ve made donations and initiated projects in the communities nearest to the Pacuare Lodge. Infrastructure in our remote area is sparse and poorly maintained, and there are few employment opportunities, which is why we make a point of hiring local people. Here’s what we’ve done so far:

• All Pacuare Lodge staff is from nearby communities and 95% of our rafting guides are from Turrialba, the closest city to the lodge.

 Pacuare Lodge has an  environmental education program for 8  schools in the communities closest to the lodge and Pacuare River.  A team of our river guides and Pacuare Lodge employees were trained to give presentations at the schools in the communities of Bajo del Tigre, Linda Vista, Santa Marta, Guayacán, El Coco and Betania, Morazàn and Moravia.

• The lunch spot on the Pacuare River the we use on our tours is rented from a Cabécar family, who feed the organic waste to pigs.

• We provide environmental education and explain our sustainable practices to local people, our staff and our guests.

• We purchase food and other goods from local providers and support organic agriculture.