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Hotel Christopher Launches St. Barth’s First Sustainable Drinking Water Solution to Reduce the Environmental Impact of Imported Bottled Water
March 23, 2023 (Pointe Milou, Saint Barthelemy): St Barthélemy’s 5-star hotel, the Christopher, located on the magnificent bay of Pointe Milou, is pleased to announce its partnership with AQUAchiara to develop a sustainable drinking water solution for its restaurants and guests, the first of its kind on the island. Since 2019, the Christopher has been working to improve its environmental impact, and to offer tourism that respects nature, which has been recognized and awarded the Green Globe Certification, the only hotel in St. Barth.
“It is absolutely necessary to consider the hotel’s consumption and sustainable efforts as we look to reduce our impact on our natural surroundings,” explains Olivier Leroy, Managing Director of Christopher. “This type of partnership helps us deliver our green vision for our hotel and restaurants and to cultivate this consciousness in tourism in order to preserve our planet.”
In 2016, the Christopher launched its own desalination project to convert ocean water into usable water throughout the property. The next step was to turn that into quality tasting water to be served to guests to reduce and eliminate its need for imported plastic bottled water. This new project was led by AQUAchiara, the French leader in transforming unpurified water into microfiltered quality drinking water for more than 15 years. Thanks to this solution, water arrives instantly at the hotel’s restaurants, Rivyera Plage and Rivyera, both led by France’s two Michelin starred Chef, Arnaud Faye. This considerably reduces CO2 emissions released by the need to transport purified water to the island. The hotel thus contributes to a sustainable ecological transition by reducing its carbon emissions, while getting rid of the logistical constraints linked to orders of bottled water, which is particularly impacting on a small island like St Barth. Another positive aspect of this approach is the significant reduction in plastic packaging, as the water is contained in personalized glass bottles, which can be used over and over again.
"After more than a year of work, a complete analysis was carried out for the commissioning of the water to ensure that it respects the quality values defined by the Ministry of Health," explains the founder of AQUAchiara, Nicolas Weyl. “We are proud to have succeeded in implementing this zero kilometer, zero waste water by adapting to island constraints.”
Using AQUAchiara’s dispensers, the water can be intensely or finely sparkling or still, fresh or temperate, depending on the taste of the consumer. This new purified water will be offered at the hotel’s restaurant venues, and in the near future in rooms and to all hotel employees. The project has notably received the support of ADEME, the French ecological transition agency, thus demonstrating the positive impact of this type of action on the environment.
About The Christopher:
At the Christopher Hotel, luxury through sustainability can be found from Pointe Milou on the northeast coast of St. Barth. The family-owned property has joined the Preferred Hotels & Resorts and L.V.X Collection and is the only hotel on St. Barths to receive the Green Globe Environmental Certification. Set in the heart of a tropical garden, the five-star hotel opened in 1993 boasts 42 spacious rooms and suites, and three 4-bedroom villas with panoramic views of the ocean. The RIVYERA restaurant is inspired by the Mediterranean and created by the two Michelin-Star Chef Arnaud Faye. Its award-winning Sisley Spa is the only one in the Caribbean and has five treatment rooms open to the sea below.
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