As a Latin American travel writer who often visits and stays at remote eco-lodges and resorts, I’ve had my fair share of experiences “traveling green.” These experiences have ranged from 5-star comfort and elegance to “please-get-me-air conditioning now” misery that make me question my commitment to the whole green travel movement. No, really, I love that more places are going green and this seems to be the wave of the future in rural Latin America. I’m always curious to know what makes a hotel decide to use more environmentally sound practices, so I corresponded with Charles Mango of the Amazon Yarapa River Lodge, who kindly shared his insights, knowledge and experiences about running an environmentally-friendly lodge in the Peruvian Amazon.

What makes a resort or lodge “green?” A green hotel first should make as small an imprint on the environment as possible. We at the Yarapa river lodge have removed as few trees as possible to situate the lodge. All materials to build were brought to the area. We did not harvest local trees in the construction. In addition we generate electricity from solar panels, and we have a waste system that keeps the river safe .

Why did you decide to take an environmentally-friendly approach at the Yarapa Lodge? We believe in sustainable tourism at the Amazon Yarapa river lodge. This means that we do have large university groups at the lodge at times, but for the most part our tourist groups are small. This keeps the stress on the environment around the lodge to a minimum both for the flora and fauna.

What techniques or resources do you incorporate to reduce your carbon footprint? we try our best to launder all of the lodge linen in Iquitos. In addition, we have a waste system that does not leach into the river. Finally, we are 90 to 95 percent electric generator free. This is accomplished by using solar panels as well as batteries for storage. We motor our guest from Iquitos to Nauta. This saves on gasoline consumption with our outboard engines.

How do you reconcile guest comfort and environmental friendliness? Many people seem to think they can’t simultaneously exist. What are some of the drawbacks or challenges you face running a “green” hotel? We do not have to sacrifice luxury by being environmentally friendly. Both go hand in hand. We do not have hot water for showers, but aside from this, our guests enjoy a five star accommodation and cuisine. There should be no drawbacks in providing a safe environment for our guests. It starts with equipment and ends with the staff all trained to assist guests in a safe manner.

Can you tell me a little bit about your story? Background: My story in the Amazon Rainforest began some years ago on a cold winter day in New York State.  My son had just returned from a trip to Central America and enticed me with his stories of the rain forest ecosystems he visited. The trip really broadened his interest in the tropics and subsequently piqued my interested.  We discussed in great detail the people, animals, bird-life, and plants indigenous to the areas he visited.  I was fascinated and decided that a visit to a tropical rainforest was in order.  After some discussion, we decided on the Amazon Rainforest as our family destination.

Well, not so fast. It is easy to say “let’s go to the Amazon”, but the Amazon is an enormous area that spans nine countries.  Where specifically did we want to visit?  We wanted to have a great experience that includes undisturbed primary lowland rainforest, excellent wildlife and bird-watching opportunities, friendly people, and a safe government situation.  This narrowed down the list of places to visit considerably.  In the end, we chose to visit the country of Peru.  Specifically, we would begin our journey in a small jungle city of Iquitos that is only accessible by boat or airplane. There are no land roads into or out of the city!  Iquitos is called the “Gateway to the Amazon” and in retrospect, it was my gateway to a world filled with new experiences and new goals.

After we arrived in Iquitos, we decided on a riverboat tour that would take us down the Amazon River to the borders of Colombia and Brazil and back again in a 10-day period. My introduction to the Amazon was filled with many “firsts.” I was introduced to the people and villages along the Amazon as we traveled the river. There was the changing but always constant jungle skyline and the myriad species of flora and fauna. The mornings exploded with a cacophony of bird calls and the evenings were filled with the soothing sounds of frogs serenading one another. I really wasn’t sure of specific bird species at this point, but that would quickly change. I was impressed with the local peoples’ deep understanding of the local animals and their environment. Our guide, Victor, became a close friend during that trip.

In the years that followed, Victor would come to visit and stay with us in our home.  He loved the winters – his first time seeing snow! Also, all of the technology we take for granted was akin to magic to him.  His favorite thing to do was accompany my wife and I to the grocery store.  He would go on and on about how plentiful the food was here compared to Peru. A close familial bond developed between Victor and my family.  Several trips to Peru later, Victor and I decided it would be a wonderful idea to build a lodge in the Peruvian rainforest that would be a partnership between Victor and my family.  Victor could do the daily managing and would be a full partner in the project.  We wanted to make this lodge special, though, and this required several important factors.

First, our lodge had to be as environmentally friendly as possible.  We would build it using solar powering and low energy lighting.  Furthermore, we decided against air conditioning and used local architectural designs that allow for natural cooling breezes to aerate the lodge.  We would only employ neighboring villagers to build the lodge (no outside contractors) and we minimized our environmental footprint by adhering to these principles.

Second, our lodge had to be in a pristine area that would ensure our guests an experience that would match their expectations.  We combed the Peruvian Amazon Basin and found a pristine tributary of the Amazon, the Yarapa River. Along the Yarapa River, there is an oxbow lake teeming with wildlife and across from this lake, along the river bank was the ideal place to build. Several species of monkey troops often play in the nearby trees, river dolphins occasionally break the water surface right in front of the lake entrance, and a myriad of bird species abound in the area.  This was the perfect place!

Construction of the Amazon Yarapa River Lodge started in 1999 and was completed in 2000. Our diligence to our principles paid off with splendid reviews by travelers and many guidebooks. However, there was another important component to our lodge that we wanted to establish.  We wanted to build a research field station to be utilized by visiting students and professors.  This way, we could continually give back to the environment in the way of increasing the understanding of the area through scientific study.

A Professor of Biology at Cornell University, Dr. Eloy Rodriguez, expressed interest in establishing a site at the lodge.  Several trips to Peru later, the Cornell University Esbaran Field Laboratory was constructed adjacent to the lodge, with Dr. Rodriguez named as the director.  The first of many groups of students and professors came down in 2001 for the inauguration of the laboratory. Since then, many scientific articles and essays have been produced from the research done at our lodge.

Conservation Mission: Every well-run business needs a mission plan.  Our mission plan was to promote conservation in the Peruvian Amazon Rainforest.  We would accomplish this by working directly with local villagers, the local government, and Cornell University to come up with a solid plan that would ensure a lasting policy.

The first task at hand was teaching the local people about the importance of conservation. We held talks with all the village chiefs regarding the wonderful resource that surrounds them and how that will all but disappear if people are allowed to fish, log, and hunt without restraint.  We also discussed the potential economic impact of having guests that will want to visit and purchase local artisan crafts and about continued employment opportunities with the lodge and laboratory.  This all made a big impression on the village chiefs and their enthusiasm propelled the project forward.

Our second task was to physically set aside a nature reserve.  The neighboring village of Jaldar donated a huge corridor of land extending several miles alongside the Yarapa River. A large field survey of the land revealed there were four lakes as well as untouched primary lowland rainforest within this tract of land.  This was an excellent starting spot to center the reservation around.

Third, we had to establish the ground rules.  We worked with the locals in making policy of not using hunting rifles and fishing with large nets, but instead using traditional weapons and fishing gear.  This has the effect of not scaring away other wildlife with rifles, and sustaining the fish at reasonable levels.  No commercial logging could be done in the reserve as well.  The village chiefs all agreed to the rules and the Yarapa River Reserve was born!

In order to ensure that the reserve policies were followed there needed to be protection from outside hunters and fisherman taking in huge kills of the local fauna. In addition, selective logging and clear cutting was an issue not only from outsiders but also from local people creating plantations. Our frustration grew but we were determined to continue with the conservation mission. We needed to go further in protecting the land and integrating the locals in the conservation effort.

After checking with the local government, we were surprised to learn that the local villages (despite having been there for generations), did not legally own their land. Could we purchase the land for the villages?  Would they police their land better then knowing they own it in the eyes of the government?  Lots of questions.a meeting was in order!

We organized a meeting with the national parks division of the Peruvian government, the local village chiefs, and the local government officials.  A decision was made that if our lodge was generous enough to “buy the land” for the villages, this would be recognized as a goodwill gesture by the Peruvian government.  In return, the national parks division of the Peruvian government would sign on to our conservation agreement to protect the reservation.  In the early 2007, a joint conservation agreement was signed and the mission continued

The joint conservation agreement insured that 70% of the watershed of the Yarapa river (except the mouth of the river and a far upstream portion) were labeled the “Yarapa River Reserve”. This is a huge area of land that covers approximately a 25-mile corridor of river.  As with our first agreement, logging, illegal fishing, and poaching were forbidden. Unlike our first agreement, official periodic patrols by the federal police ensure that the conservation agreement stays in order.  Furthermore, and most importantly, the villages themselves are now much more proactive in patrolling their own land that is encompassed within the Yarapa River Reserve.

We were content with everything except that the mouth of the river and far upstream portion were not covered in the Yarapa River Reserve.  Despite our enormous success in the conservation plan to date, this was still an issue. Commercial fisherman would string nets across the entire width of the Yarapa River mouth where it opens into the Amazon River netting huge quantities of fish.  This would prevent the pink and grey river dophins from making their way up and down the river.  Occasionally, a dolphin would even drown when it got stuck in the nets.

In order to make the entire project work, we needed to gain control of the lands along the mouth of the Yarapa that were not in the conservation agreement. Without securing this land fishermen as well as farmers and hunters could continue to overfish the area and log the area to create plantations. To get this land, we worked with the Peruvian Department of Agriculture, and obtained a 40-year lease for the land along the mouth of the Yarapa River. In addition, we lengthened the reserve by leasing the far upstream portion of the Yarapa now bringing the total to a 40-mile corridor. This land was then placed into the conservation agreement, making approximately 90% of the Yarapa river protected.

Present and Future Efforts: The federal police now patrols the entire Yarapa River Reserve twice a month to make sure the reserve laws are being enforced.  A few years ago, a group of contract loggers were found illegally clear-cutting an area in the Yarapa River Reserve.  The loggers were arrested and the timber seized.  This enforcement of a conservation agreement was recognized as a first for the Peruvian Amazon.

The success of this conservation plan is measured in many ways.  First, the flora and fauna are thriving.  River dolphins are again spotted regularly in the Yarapa river and connecting lakes.  Second, the local people are proud stewards of their environment.  No one knows the land better than them and finally, they rightfully own it.  Third, visitors to the area benefit from the education they receive from the locals on the importance of preserving the environment.

As the success of this project continues, there is now talk of changing the status of the Yarapa River Reserve from a government reservation to a national park.  Yes, it is just an “idea”, but that is what started this whole thing to begin with.  Transformation to national park status would increase funding for river patrols, improve education facilities, and bolster research in the area.  This “idea” would ensure the protection of one of the greatest areas of biodiversity on the planet for generations to come.

Today, [the Amazon Yarapa River Lodge] employes earth-friendly resources, including full solar powering, composting, and flush toilets with a waste management system. Roofs and walkways are thatch covered, providing a natural cooling system from the tropical heat. All furniture is hand-carved furniture that has been built by local artisans.

Do you believe “green” is the future of travel? Yes I do believe that this type of sustainable tourism is what people want. We have been on the cutting edge of this and I hope that we will see it become more popular in the future.

For additional information about grassroots sustainable tourism, check out my article on green tourism or click here for more on the Amazon Yarapa River Lodge.