We’ll start with a big one, flying. Unfortunately, flying and travel are not the best of combinations. However, with a little thought and planning, we can mitigate a reasonable amount of the impact our flying has on the environment and be a more environmentally aware traveller…
#1
The obvious starting point would be to fly less and take fewer flight-based trips.
#2
If you are going to fly, then look to offset your carbon and the easiest way to do this is by planting trees. £5 to £10 each time you fly will help massively. However, do consider the project as you’ll want your money to go straight into planting a tree and not into quango lobbying politicians! Also remember that once the tree is planted it needs to be monitored until it’s strong enough to grow independently and this should be part of the scheme.
#3
Soil is a major source of stored carbon. If trees are planted using industrial processes, which often mean the soil is ploughed and turned over, the amount of carbon released from the soil can be greater than the initial carbon uptake by your growing tree. Look for small scale schemes which use the traditional methods of digging a small hole and planting a tree.
#4
Biodiversity – it’s not just about trees and carbon uptake. A good carbon offset scheme will also increase biodiversity, provided a variety of trees are planted. This improves habitat and soil quality, reduces erosion and if schemes are near streams and rivers they can create shade over the water which has the added benefit of lowering water temperatures and allows marine life to flourish (often streams and river banks have little shade and the increased water temperature reduces bio-diversity).
#5
Plastic is the plague off our times; we can’t live without it and can’t live with it. So, what should we do? Avoid bottled water where possible, there are bottle purification systems you can buy and use when away which means you can fill them up from a hotel tap.
#6
Don’t use plastic bags – take a couple of bags for life with you when you travel, or just fill up your rucksack when you go shopping
#7
Bring back your plastic. Many countries don’t have any plastic recycling and the best thing to do is bring back your empty shampoo and shower bottles and put them with your weekly recycling at home. If you are buying products abroad in plastic containers, consider cutting them up into small pieces and bringing them home as well.
#8
Litter, if you see it pick it up. Just because someone doesn’t care doesn’t mean that we should ignore it. If we all picked up one piece of litter everyday there would be a whole lot less that end up in streams, rivers and eventually the sea.
#9
Turn the lights off! Do we really need all those lights on?
#10
Flush the loo less. We don’t have to flush the toilet every time we have to pee.
Responsible tourism
At Archipelago Choice we’re passionate about low impact, responsible tourism. We believe it’s vital to keep our island destinations unspoilt, special places for wildlife, local people and visitors alike.
We have a great tree planting project which has seen over 4000 trees planted in the past 2 years, with another 2000 being planted in 2018.
Let us help you to become a more environmentally aware traveller!
Travel with the Award Winning Azores, Cape Verde, Madeira and Sao Tome Holiday Specialists
At Archipelago Choice, we have a team of Activity Holidays Specialists who know all about the Azores, Cape Verde, Madeira and Sao Tome and the best ways to explore. They are ready to answer all your questions. You can also request a brochure or make an enquiry online – just click on the links.