Nature Reserve Protection
With over 1000 acres of land there is a lot of area to protect. In order to save our environment and ensure future benefits, we must not only ensure the refuge of the species but protect the natural ecosystems as well. This is done by minimizing destruction of habitat and allowing the natural habitat privacy to take care of itself. Not only must we work to prevent damage from being done to the environment, we must also work to ensure that it has what it needs to take care of it. We have several types of habitats that we care for: Cloud rainforest; shade coffee plantation, pastureland, and inhabited areas.
Cloud Rainforest
The rainforest mainly needs the help of keeping the negative elements out. Ensuring no hunting, cutting or burning occurs within our property limits is an attainable goals we ensure with maintenance and supervision of the limits of our land. Yet, ensuring that the area surrounding our land stays as forest is much harder. Luckily some of this area is part of the ARENAL nature reserve overseen by MARENA, the national environmental agency. They have assisted us with the maintenance of the Cody trail where you will find numerous informational boards and an easy walking platform. The rest of the trails cut in and out of the primary and secondary rain forest in a thought out method to ensure minimal impact on the mountain. Organic trash bins are located throughout the mountain trail to encourage guests to gather their trash in convenient and safe locations.
Shade Coffee Plantation
"Shade coffee plantations are excellent to create buffer zones around natural reserves. These plantations provide a smooth transition between urban and natural areas. Buffer zones are critical for the protection of the ecosystems as well as endemic, native and migratory wildlife, including many endangered species." - US Fish and Wildlife
With a rustic shade coffee plantation such as Selva Negra trees are layered and species are diverse. With predominantly indigenous trees many of which are centennial and provide essential nutrients to the soil the flora and fauna flourish.
Pastureland
Even our pasture land, normally the wasteland of ecological impact, have a positive carbon footprint. Since the cattle industry and meat eating are targeted as a leading cause of global warming. The trick is the continual movement of cattle from one section to the next, not only do they not damage the pasture they're on, but they essentially help plant it anew. With the cattle still on the field new plants are sprinkled around allowing them to stomp on them, and thereby planting them. With their manure it is fertilized and it will serve as their meal next time they return to this section.
Inhabited Areas
The areas inhabited within Selva Negra include the lodge and guest lodging areas, personal housing, and the workers housing complex. The housing complex includes school, clinic, kitchen, single-family homes and dorm style complex. All of the inhabited areas have multiple projects that help preserve them and their surrounding habitats from present and future damage. Starting with sustainable building practices and renewable energy sources as well as water treatment projects and waste minimization.
Carbon Footprint
The nature reserve also serves as a key defense against global warming by storing massive amounts of carbon. Selva Negra has such a light footprint that we actually have a negative footprint. We produce about 201.819 tonnes of CO2 per year, and we offset our output with removal of 580 tonnes of CO2 per year. Meaning we have available 380 tonnes of credits. To put this into perspective; the average American person produces about 21.70 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. So, Selva Negra, all the people living in it (about 500) and all its operations including the eco lodge, the farm, all the coffee processing facilities, workers lodgings, clinic, school and the kitchens produces less carbon dioxide than 10 average American people.