Environment Policy
Wharton Lodge Cottages

We are Silver members of the Green Tourism Business Scheme. The scheme provides accreditation and encouragement for tourism businesses to reduce the environmental impact of their activities.

It is the policy of Wharton Lodge Cottages to encourage its employees, guests and contractors to minimise our impact on the environment. We aim to start small but act consistently. Reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink. Here in the fabulous Herefordshire countryside we encourage guests to get outside: to walk, run, cycle, use public transport or car share.

Energy Saving:

• The cottages have been well insulated to minimise the use of fuel
• Some of the light bulbs we use are low energy
• Heating is on only when guests are in residence

Waste Reduction/Recycling:

• There is a green wheely bin in the outhouse available for your glass, paper/card, plastics and tin
• We leave you a reusable bag for your shopping whilst you are here
• We provide recycled toilet paper for guests
• We have a compost bin in the vegetable garden and a heap in the parkland, which the sheep help us to manage and contain
• Our milkman delivers milk and orange juice. Used bottles should be returned to the holder at the back door of Wharton Lodge for recycling
• We harvest rainwater from the garage roof to water our pot plants

Cleaning:

• We use as many environmentally friendly products as possible, from companies such as Ecover
• Vinegar makes a very good cleaning solution
• We use a steamer to clean carpets and upholstery

Fauna and Flora:

• Our parkland has many mature, specimen trees with the aim of providing habitats for birds and other creatures. The six main specimen trees are named on their trunks
• We have planted shrubs such as Buddleia expressly to attract butterflies, Water Lilies to encourage Dragon Flies. We also have Greater Spotted Newts in the small pond at the side of the Wharton Lodge
• We provide bird feeding tables and bird boxes. We offer a home for bats in the eves
• There are books and leaflets in the cottages to aid identification of birds
• We use flowers from the garden and park to decorate the cottages
• We re-plant our Christmas trees to use year-on-year in the cottages

Provisions/Fair Trade:

• We encourage guests to walk to the village shop in Lea for provisions. Local produce is available as well as free-range eggs
• We use a selection of Fair Trade products
• The Welcome Gift of wine, perry or cider is from our local shopping outlet Labels and is locally produced in Newent – Three Choirs Wine and Much Marcle – Westons Cider & Perry
• Guests are welcome to make use of the herbs in the organic herb garden
• Freezer meals are from local producers - Moor Meals or cooked in-house using local produce
• We have changed from using cakes of soap and small containers of bath foam and body lotion to larger re-fillable containers in order to minimise packaging and save waste

Future Plans:

• We plan to increase our use of energy-saving light bulbs
• We have a quotation to improve the roof insulation in the cottages
• Introduce recycled paper for stationery, brochure and printing
• Dog waste – organic disposal or dog waste treatment system

We promise to review and revise this policy as necessary at regular intervals and welcome feedback and input from guests.

If you have any comments please phone 01989 750140 or email ncross@whartonlodge.co.uk

February 2011