With all of the necessary safety measures in place to manage COVID-19 restrictions, responsible tourism is still an important initiative for our top South African attractions.
We chatted to two of our longtime AAVEA members and sponsors, the Two Oceans Aquarium and the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway about which additional measures they put in place:
Two Oceans Aquarium:
A Diamond member of the Heritage Environmental Rating Programme, the Aquarium strives to incorporate sustainability in everything it does – from conducting its daily business, to visitor interaction and information sharing.
As regular visitors to this popular attraction will know, waste reduction has always been at the top of the Aquarium’s must-do list. From having a waste management and recycling company representative onsite every day to hosting beach clean-ups often, as well as ensuring that food waste is also separated and sent for use in the manufacturing of compost, reducing waste is a daily activity.
Energy conservation and saving water are also key elements of the Aquarium’s sustainability practices.
Energy efficient appliances and pumps have been installed and solar panels, on a large section of the Aquarium’s roof, contribute to the daily power needed for the running of the building. Water-saving devices and water tanks have also been installed.
Be a part of the change:
Keen to get involved with the Two Oceans Aquarium’s RT projects? They’ll be hosting their upcoming Trash Bash Beach Cleanup event at Sunset Beach on 26 March 2022. Everyone is encouraged to participate safely, by always wearing their masks and dressing appropriately.
Join the Two Oceans Aquarium for their upcoming Trash Bash Beach Clean-up event. Image credit: Two Oceans Aquarium
Read more about it here.
Table Mountain Aerial Cableway:
The Cableway has been a pioneer of responsible tourism in Cape Town since 2009. Having always served their food offering in compostable or recyclable containers, the pivot for COVID-19 was relatively easy. With the drop in visitor numbers, the TMACC team have created less waste to landfill, but also less waste that can be recycled and/or composted.
Day Zero might have long faded from the public’s memory but here too, the Cableway has led the charge to save water with dual flush toilets, push-button taps and waterless urinals.
Energy efficiency is key with timers on all outside lighting, blankets on essential geysers and ensuring all non-essential geysers has been switched off.
Read more about the Cableway’s RT projects here.
No responses yet