Sun International’s Wild Coast Sun property has become the first in Africa to receive a Net Zero Waste rating from the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA).

The award, which is the first of its kind in the country, was for an ambitious recycling project that has seen the Wild Coast Sun sending zero waste to landfill since the end of 2016.

To be considered for the award, the hotel had to implement an operational waste and materials management plan and had to submit to regular audits.  To be effective in the long term, the Wild Coast Sun used educational, workshops and seminars to create awareness among staff.

Since January 2017, the property has recycled 600 tons of waste annually. Not only will this help to protect the pristine Wild Coast environment, it is also creating jobs for the local community. The project now sustains two permanent enterprise development projects.

Organic waste

The property features a compost yard which covers approximately 70 meters and produced 187 tons of compost during 2018. This translated into a saving of R430 000 for compost, which the resort had to previously buy to maintain its golf course and garden. Excess compost is used to cultivate organic vegetables grown in the garden saving the resort an additional R10 000.

Plastic waste and non-recyclable waste

Most plastic waste is recycled, while other used materials such as hotel furniture, computers, appliances and linen are donated to needy local communities and organisations such as hospitals.

Non-recyclable waste is used to manufacture eco-bricks by the unit’s appointed recycling service provider based in Port Edward. This in turn has created further jobs in the area to deal with the approximately 40 tons of waste that the Wild Coast Sun used to send to landfill every month.

A natural progression

Sonja Stroud, Safety, Health and Environmental Officer, says the companies approach to sustainability is holistic.

“It is based on the need to protect our natural environment and to save our natural resources, so eliminating the waste we send to landfill is a natural progression of this strategy. To achieve our zero waste goal we had to scrutinise every element of our operation at the Wild Coast.

“The first step was to get rid of skips and compactors and to sort the waste on site. Now, recycling and repurposing waste lessens our environmental footprint and also assists people living in the communities we do business in through donations of physical products, excess food from our gardens and the creation of new business and employment opportunities.”

Sun International first introduced plans to eliminate waste sent to landfill in 2015, and will aim to achieve zero waste to landfill at all of its South African properties.