News

Ritz-Carlton active partner in mangrove preservation

By Chen Hong and Han Xiaofeng (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-09-13 15:59

Steve Grein (middle) and Jane Cai (left) are building the birdhouse.  [chinadaily.com.cn]

SHENZHEN - Steve Grein, executive chef of Ritz-Carlton, Shenzhen, was satisfied with the wooden birdhouse that he and his teammates spent about one hour on for the city's only mangrove park. "That is the Ritz-Carlton for birds!" he said cheerfully, with sweat dripping down his face in the humid and scorching Wednesday afternoon.

Grein and 15 other employees and guests of the hotel joined the hotel's voluntary program to preserve the wetland at Futian Mangrove Nature Reserve on Sept 8, with more programs scheduled for Oct 26 and Nov 15.

"The Ritz-Carlton's legacy of extraordinary service extends beyond the care and comfort we offer our guests into the communities in which we live and work," Iwan Dietschi, general manager of the hotel, told China Daily.

Marius Von Tangen-Jordan, executive assistant manager for room division and one of the volunteers, said, "As a big company, Ritz-Carlton not only focuses on business, but also pays great attention to environment conservation, which we consider a social responsibility."

The half-day program also invites guests at the Ritz-Carlton, Shenzhen, to take part, as experts would share their knowledge about the mangrove and its natural and cultural history.

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"I joined the program as soon as I heard about it," said Zi Chu, one of the guest volunteers. "It offers us guests an excellent opportunity to protect the mangrove through a combination of education and fieldwork."

Mangroves, which can be found in tropical and sub-tropical tidal areas, can survive in seawater, providing support and hiding places for a wide variety of marine life and serving as storm buffers.

Futian Mangrove Nature Reserve is China's smallest State-level nature reserve and plays a significant role as a "rest station" for migratory birds.

According to Jane Cai, public relations director of the Ritz-Carlton, Shenzhen, the "Preserving the Wetland" program began in July 2009, when the hotel and the Shenzhen Mangrove Nature Reserve established a long-term cooperation for the purpose of environmental conservation.

Hotel personnel and guests take part in the volunteer program, working along with experts to help protect the mangrove wetlands by planting and taking care of trees, removing invasive species of plants and building birdhouses, she added.

The first global assessment of mangroves in over a decade by UNEP (United Nations Environment Program) revealed in July that rare and critically important mangrove forests continue to disappear at a rate three to four times higher than land-based global forests. About one-fifth of all mangroves are thought to have been lost since 1980, according to the report.