Hotel Makes Own Eco-friendly Bricks
The Western Cape department of Environment, Planning and Economic Development's Cleaner Production in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry project advises hotels and hospitality facilities on how to reduce their environmental impact. By Glenda Nevill
Spier, one of 10 hotels to take part in the project, has started manufacturing its own environmentally friendly clay bricks as part of its ongoing commitment to environmental conservation.
Minister Tasneem Essop, in the foreword of the project's resulting report, says the tourism industry has a "special responsibility" to ensure that its impact on the environmental integrity of South Africa is kept to a minimum at all times.
Spier has gone into a joint venture to form Adobe Works at Spier. The venture is making handmade bricks from a combination of clay, sand and straw. The bricks are being used for all its building projects.
'We aim to be as environmentally friendly as possible,' said Tanner Methvin, Spier's director of sustainable development. 'These bricks are sun-dried, non-polluting and thus environmentally friendly.'
Another sustainable aspect of adobe bricks is that they are good insulators. "Compared to concrete, adobe bricks are better able to keep a building's interior cool when it is warm outside, and they keep the warmth in when it is cold,' said Justin Descoins from Adobe Brick Works. "This saves energy and money."
The team makes between 400 and 1 000 bricks per day. Apart from making bricks, they are also being trained to assist in renovation, reparation and structure enhancing activities on the estate.
According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, adobe is a natural building material composed of sand, sandy clay and straw or other organic materials, which is shaped into bricks using wooden frames and dried in the sun. It is similar to cob and mudbrick.
Adobe structures are extremely durable and account for the oldest extant buildings on the planet. Adobe buildings also offer significant advantages in hot, dry climates; they remain cooler as adobe stores and releases heat very slowly.
News source: www.news24.co.za
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