Abstract
Because the ecosystems of mid-ocean archipelagos are relatively simple, it is easy to see improvements caused by favorable environmental practices. Working on a financial shoestring, the management of the Welcomgroup Bay Island hotel, at Port Blair on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, established an environmental-improvement program based on four "Rs": reduce, reuse, recycle, and rethink. For example, the resort dealt in turn with a shortage of potable water by altering its system to use seawater; soil erosion by mulching the ground with coconut husks; disposal of cooking oil by converting it into soap; and paper waste by shredding it and turning it into horticultural mulch. The resort also engaged its guests in an educational effort regarding the islands' fragile ecosystem. Beyond that, the hotel's management encouraged other operators on Andaman and Nicobar to follow ecologically sound policies. Among other outcomes, the Welcomgroup chain adopted the Port Blair property's environmental policies system-wide.
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