Reethi Beach Resort in the Maldives is proud to announce that Baa Atoll has been recognized as a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. The status was bestowed on the atoll on April 23 in recognition of the outstanding natural values of Baa Atoll, through the extensive work done by Reethi Beach Resort and the commitments made by local communities and other Maldives resorts.

Reethi Beach Resort has made a huge commitment to environmental issues, most recently participating in the celebration of Earth Day, on April 22, 2012, when resort volunteers and resort guests planted 50 coconut palms and other trees on the island of Veyofushi on Baa Atoll. The island is being developed for agricultural purposes, and the 50 coconut palms and other trees were planted on the southern stretch of the island. To view images of the event, go to: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.344873025574698.80113.111614475567222&type=3 .

On Saturday, March 31, 2012, at 8:30 pm, Reethi Beach Resort and its team took part in Earth Day – the world’s largest global climate change initiative led by the World Wildlife Fund – by simply turning out all non-essential lighting in many public areas and buildings, as well as in the staff area and the back of house.

Another important environmental practice put into action at the resort is the handling of the disposal of used household batteries. In light of the general difficulties that are implicated with waste disposal on a small island, and as part of Reethi Beach Resort’s commitment to keep its environmental footprint as small as possible, the resort has always spent a great deal of effort in separating waste.

One type of waste, which has been collected separately for a long time from both guests and staff, is household batteries. However, the resort faces the unique challenge of finding adequate disposal channels. There are no facilities in Maldives to turn in old batteries, and options to feed them for removal to India, Sri Lanka, or Singapore have been explored but have not yielded satisfying results.

A bulk shipment to Europe by a commercial airline could be arranged, meeting all requirements for safe transport on cargo planes, but such a shipment will not be forwarded as freight on a passenger aircraft. So Reethi Beach Resort came up with an innovative plan, and now asks each guest departing from the resort and heading to Europe, to carry a small number of batteries with them where safe disposal is guaranteed and readily accessible.

The batteries are packed in 4s and wrapped, without the poles touching – the major issue for transport. Now all these household type batteries (D, C, AA, AAA and 9-Volt) used in remote controls, smoke detectors, and torches can safely be disposed of. Since implementing the battery disposal program, an estimated 100 kg of used batteries have been taken by resort guests back to Europe within less than a month.

For more information about Reethi Beach Resort, visit www.reethibeach.com.mv .