| KONA BEACH HOUSE |
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Plantation Manager's Beach House Sustainability |
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| "Kona kai opua i ka la'i" Kona where the horizon clouds rest in the calm. |
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Long before the term "sustainability" became fashionable, people in Hawai'i were by choice and of necessity living "sustainably." Plantation Manager's Beach House Provides an excellent example of this principle. The Beach House is Recycled from an old railroad bridge In 1946 a huge tsunami hit the Hamakua Coast. It destroyed several of the railroad bridges that spanned the deep gulches along the Coast. These redwood bridges (probably built in the 19th century) were too expensive to be rebuilt, so the railroad was abandoned. William F. Robertson, bought one of the bridges, and had it cut up into posts, beams, joists, and siding and built his house. Naturally termite resistant Termites don't like redwood so there was no need to "treat" the lumber. Local renewable materials The wall board is "Canec" a fiber board made of pressed bagass - or cane pulp - a factory in Hilo used to take cane waste and make it into Canec. Energy efficiency -"mauka makai," no HVAC The House has no heating or air conditioning - it designed facing the ocean on once side and the mountain on the other ("mauka / makai") and only one room deep so it is naturally ventilated. In addition, we have installed energy star appliances and low energy light bulbs Not built on a "green field;" no alteration of the land form Polynesians have inhabited Hawai'i for at least 1,000 years. The site was never graded. Old walls, trails, public beach Although we own seven lots, there was an old trail in front of our houses which we still allow people to use. Although we "own" to the mean high tide line, the beaches in Hawai'i are for the public to enjoy. We maintain our beaches, and encourage the public to respect endangered and threatened species, the coral reef, and the reef fish. Native and endemic plants We have reintroduced native and endemic plants. Botanical enthusiast will discover: a'alii, akia, ala he'e, hala, hau, ke'oke'o, kou, koki'o, loulu, ma' hau hele, milo, na'au, naio, nanu, naupaka, noni, pili grass, niu, and more Honu The lagoon in front of our homes is wonderful habitat for the Honu, we always have one or two in the water or on the beach, and sometimes we have seven or eight. We post our beach to tell people not to bother the Honu. Recycling Of course! Local staff All our staff is local, our policy is to pay a living wage, to everybody, tree trimmers, landscapers, cleaning crews, and skilled workers. Local Guides Our caretaker, who lives on site, was born and raised in Kona. He is an ardent surfer, swimmer and kayaker. He helps guests with local knowledge and customs Buy local When we are using our home we "buy local" at local farmers market, or locally owned business, were we consciously select local products, we urge our guests to do the same. Contributions to local economy More than 35% of the amount spent by our guests goes to County of Hawai'i taxes to help our economy. Coming soon Photo voltaic solar panels, evapotranspiration (or a "Living Machine") + rain water recapture. In the old days the only water we had for drinking and cooking was the water we captured off the roof and stored in redwood tanks. We will have to spend lots of money to replace that old system. "auwe!" Lifestyle The Plantation Manager's Beach House is owned by people who were born and grew up in the Islands. We strive to preserve a sense of Hawai'i and Kona as we knew it in the 1940's and 50's, and to share it with those that appreciate a simpler time. Mahalo Malama Pono Ian F. Robertson, L.E.E.D. |