On an adventure in Costa Rica’s rainforest

Pacuare Lodge works with sustainable tourism:

• Pacuare Lodge was built with minimal impact on the surrounding forests and rivers. No trees were felled to build bungalows and cottages, but the material was obtained from a afforestation project run by small farmers. The roofs were made by local Cabécar Indians in their traditional style with palm leaves, which were gathered in a forest reserve.

• Over the years, the lodge has purchased over 800 hectares of rainforest along the Pacuare River – both to protect nature and to compensate for the CO2 emissions that come from the lodge’s vehicles. This makes your trip CO2 neutral. Parts of the rainforest were in danger of being destroyed before they bought it, but are now strictly protected to preserve the flora and fauna that live here. Since the goal is to preserve this pristine virgin rainforest, no visitors are allowed into this area.

• The cottage’s bathroom is equipped with biodegradable soaps and shampoos, and water for the showers is heated by solar heating. The sewage’s wastewater flows into a unique sewer system to avoid contamination of the nearby river.

• The bungalows are lit with lanterns and candles, and the small amount of electricity used in the cottage is clean energy generated by a turbine in a nearby stream.

• The lodge uses as much organic produce as possible in the meals, both in the cottages and along the river.

• Through voluntary contributions from guests, grasslands in the Pacuare River are replanted with local wood species to compensate for carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles and to improve the overall biodiversity of the area. As these trees grow and breathe, they absorb both CO2 and provide habitat for forest animals, birds and insects.

• On-site biologists help study jaguars in the forests along the Pacuare River and the lodge supports the work by providing them (the biologists) with food, accommodation and logistical support, as well as purchasing digital cameras that researchers set up to photograph these shady animals. .

• Reindeer monkeys are reintroduced into the forest reserve, these were exterminated by loakel hunters many years ago. They rescued the first group of eight monkeys reintroduced from an island in a nearby river where they had been stranded after a flood.

• The lodge has a well-functioning recycling program that is in use all the way from the head office to the lodge. At the cabin, you compost organic waste and separate recyclable material for further transport to recycling companies. At lunch served during the Pacuare River trip, you use recyclable plates, cups and cutlery rather than the disposable products that other rafting companies use.

• A bio-boiler has been installed for the production of gas from organic waste from Pacuare Lodge’s kitchen. Produced gas is used for cooking and for heating water in the bungalows

• When washing laundry, the wastewater is separated into a closed system, and basically only biodegradable cleaning agents are used.

• The Costa Rican government is trying to get the Pacuare River a blue flag in recognition of the clean environment, and a CST (Sustainable Tourism Certification) is being obtained.

Sustainable tourism aims to improve the lives of local people, and projects and donations in the communities closest to Pacuare Lodge have been launched. The infrastructure in this remote area is poorly maintained and there are few jobs, which is why one is careful to hire the locals. Here’s what has been done so far:

• All staff at Pacuare Lodge are from the nearby communities, and 95% of the lodge’s rafting guides are from Turrialba, the town closest to the lodge.

• Books and other materials are donated to three primary schools in the communities closest to the lodge, and donations are accepted from our guests and the money is passed on to the schools as a whole (no administration fees are deducted).

• The lodge helps an isolated Cabécar Indian community near the lodge install a drinking water system.

• At the lunch spot on the Pacuare River, tours are purchased from a Cabécar family.

• Environmental education is provided and sustainable methods are explained to the local population, staff and guests.

• You buy food and other goods from local suppliers and support organic farming.

Evergreen Lodge

Evergreen Lodge has a strong commitment to the environment and sustainable development, because of this they have worked hard to get sustainability certifications in place by implementing various measures and programs such as energy and water saving projects, recycling programs and training of staff in sustainability. The goal is to use and manage the resources you have in the right way, and to contribute to the environment and society.

Evergreen Lodge works to protect children and young people from sexual exploitation. Evergreen Lodge is certified by theRainforest alliance.