Going green gets Centara the gold

BANGKOK, Thailand – For the past five years, Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi has been working with EarthCheck to improve their sustainability efforts.

BANGKOK, Thailand – For the past five years, Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi has been working with EarthCheck to improve their sustainability efforts. After creating and implementing a large-scale environmental and social management system, Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi has now achieved the status of โ€œEarthCheck Gold,โ€ recognizing the Resortโ€™s successful five-year-long commitment to sustainable tourism. As the first property in Thailand to receive the Gold certification, Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi is proud of their team that continues to uphold the Centara values for sustainability and innovation.

Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi, in partnership with EarthCheck, created distinct policies and procedures such as risk assessments, waste management plans and internal audits in order to achieve greater sustainability and the tools by which to measure progress. In doing so, Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi has improved its regulatory compliance in areas such as greenhouse gas emissions, fresh water conservation, energy efficiency, and waste management.

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โ€œWe are honored and proud to have the first property in Thailand to achieve the Gold certification,โ€ shared Centara Hotels and Resorts CEO Khun Thirayuth Chirathivat. โ€œCentara strives for greater sustainability, especially as we continue to grow locally and internationally.โ€

The โ€œEarthCheck Goldโ€ designation is only conferred after five years of continual independent assessment and adherence to internationally-recognized, scientific standards. These efforts help inspire stakeholder confidence and drive further organizational improvement, competitive advantage, innovation and growth.

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This achievement confirms Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabiโ€™s status as an industry leader in the region, as the first ever Thai resort to achieve this highly-regarded recognition.

Given Centara Grand Krabiโ€™s remote location, only accessibly by boat, in 2014, a RO (reverse osmosis) plant was installed allowing them to produce their own drinking water that is bottled in renewable pasteurized glass bottles, which has reduced their carbon footprint from transportation. By recycling their waste water for the garden, they also reduced their water consumption by 81,111,291 liters, the equivalent to 32 Olympic size swimming pools during 2014.

Stewart Moore, CEO and founder of EarthCheck, said that Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi has a long standing commitment to sustainability, which is reflected in their continued dedication to the EarthCheck program. Moore continues, โ€œThe resort is a leading operator in Asia and a valued member of a global group of tourism operators who dare to make a difference.โ€

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Several other Centara properties are on track to receive Gold certification by the end of 2015, while other properties work towards obtaining their bronze and silver certifications. Centara believes that it is their responsibility to protect and enhance the local communities.

Centara is a member of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) .

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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