Ecotourism at Pezula Resort Hotel & Spa, South Africa

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. October 14, 2008

SOUTH AFRICA, May 31, 2006. Dramatically perched on a cliff top overlooking the Indian Ocean and Knysna Lagoon, Pezula Resort Hotel & Spa is set in one of South Africa's most beautiful locations. This privileged position is one that the resort's management is both immensely proud of and keen to preserve, which is one reason why they have worked so hard to be voted the 'Most environmentally aware development in the world' (Homes Overseas Magazine Awards, 2005).

The Pezula Estate incorporates both Pezula Resort Hotel & Spa, as well as a 1,500 acre cliff top estate. A key feature of the Pezula environmental plan has been the concerted effort to clear the area of foreign vegetation species. Over the past 70 years, the fertile land of the estate had been used for commercial forestry. As a result, the area's main foliage was no longer the indigenous fynbos but alien pine and eucalyptus trees. In order to correct this, the developers embarked upon an ongoing mass clearance exercise to chop down and remove one million alien trees. This is the largest privately funded project of its kind in South Africa.

As the removal process was carried out, the natural fynbos and forest vegetation began to reappear on its own accord. The reintroduction of fynbos has caused a dramatic increase in local wildlife. An example of this is the increased bird count, from 30 bird species prior to the clearance, to now over 100 bird species in the area. Following the success of the natural processes, a large replanting programme was unnecessary. A nursery, however, was established onsite, for holding trees that had been rescued from other properties scheduled for construction and for propagating flora. Pezula has also created a botanical garden on the estate. The aim is to represent the plants of the afromontane forest biome and its transition zone in the Southern Cape.

The regenerated Pezula forest also offers the site for the resort hotel's hiking excursions. All the paths are defined by recycled gums and pine chips, which were waste from the clearing process, therefore causing no additional damage to the environment. Similarly, decomposing branches and bark serve as mulch for the indigenous plant life which is also returning.

Guests are encouraged to get involved and learn more about the surrounding environment. The resort's wildlife manager, Dennis Robson, will accompany guests through the nature trails pointing out indigenous plant life and trails left by the local game and bush pigs, as well as educating them on the intricacies of preserving this precious environment.

The number of game has also increased on the Pezula estate since the regeneration programme. Visitors regularly enjoy sightings of small mammal species, such as Cape Clawless Otters, Large and Small Grey Mongoose and Bushbuck. Plans are afoot to add to the Cape grysbok, blue duiker and bushback that provide sightings on an almost daily basis. From July next year, when the winter cold puts less stress on moving game, grey duiker, rhebok, bontebok and zebra are to be released onto the estate. To accommodate the additional animals in as much open space as possible, an underground passage beneath the road has been designed to enable them to pass undisturbed from one section of the estate to the other.

The removal of pine and eucalyptus has also led to an increase in surface water as a by-product of the process. The result has been the subsequent regeneration of water-loving species in the wetlands. Many plants and flowers have returned, enjoying the newly created water courses that are present.

In further efforts to reduce the development's impact on the environment, only 15% of the Pezula estate has been earmarked for development. The roads which dissect the area are concrete strip roads with grass verges in-between, rather than hard tar or bitumen and follow the same paths of the old logging tracks in order to reduce their impact on the environment. These middle sections have been planted with indigenous vegetation and act as extra grazing for the buck on the estate.

Throughout the Pezula estate exotic grass types are banned due to being invasive and requiring high water consumption and only organic herbicides and fertilizers are used in gardens. Banks surrounding the roads, are planted with water-wise indigenous plants and the intersections are lit only with low-level lighting. Natural elements such as rocks and logs are not allowed to be removed.

In order to conserve water, the Pezula golf course is irrigated with effluent. In addition, the resort has built private small-scale storage ponds for its own needs, as well as a series of dams and weirs, while homeowners are required to have underground rainwater tanks. The resort is also monitoring the springs popping up and measure volumes, all the while building a database for research purposes.

Pezula has a full time team of wildlife and ecology experts who are based onsite. Access to the resort is also carefully controlled, in order to further manage the numbers of people and potential impact on the environment