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The Green Man Hotel at  The   Odeleite   River   Valley   Eco   Centre   

Copyright Torvec 2023

(The Green Man Hotel) is the latest manifestation of our living in harmony with nature project, a soon to be healthy living rural oasis, after the major realignment of the REN. ( Reserva Ecológica Nacional ) borders on our land which opened up our  original preferred development area for locating and constructing  the hotel, we are at last reaching the final planning stages for phase one of the project, the first stage of which we will be creating a 100% carbon negative infrastructure for our hotel building and this could potentially and probably will end up being the greenest, the healthiest, the most sustainable, the most eco friendly, user friendly hotel in the world.

For this 100% carbon negative method of construction, we will be using Hemp shiv and lime binder materials cast round a heavy duty timber frame to create a two storey contiguous monolithic structure, hemp/lime is a building system which is internationally recognised as being a low impact sustainable form of construction, a very versatile natural building material that provides a low tech solution for eco friendly zero-carbon (or as in this case a negative carbon) building, the primary hemp material can also be grown on site or in the nearby locality with negligible transport costs.

This contiguous monolithic structure of floors walls and roofs will create an energy efficient thermal mass that heats up gradually during the day and releases the retained heat slowly during the evening and night, the breathable walls in this type of construction helps create the cleanest and purest indoor air quality possible, ensuring extremely healthy living and sleeping conditions for the long term residents as well as for short term holiday guests.

From a climate and environmental friendly standpoint the beauty of this particular construction material lies in the fact that it sequesters more carbon than it creates, it’s also earthquake proof, has a high level of fire resistance, is damp and mould proof as well as rodent and termite proof, noise proof, wind proof, with all these benefits and a simple though smart low tech building design, this project could well be the most eco friendly, most sustainable and healthiest hotel complex anywhere on the planet with a potential life span of hundreds of years and at end of life could be fully recycled.

The ultimate aim of The Green Man Hotel is to optimise the health and well-being of all our clients whether long term or medium term residents or short term holiday makers, giving everyone the opportunity to maximise their active and healthy life span, a long term sustainable healthy living environment is our ultimate aim, this will be cosy and comfortable accommodation for our clients with no drafts, condensation or cold spots,  our intention is to make this a high value concept whilst keeping it as affordable as possible, especially for the long term residents or core stake holders, (see Opportunities).

Our clients and guests will hopefully have similar views as ourselves about how future climate change will affect our long term living environment and will be happy to be part of this unique low impact development as well as being attracted to the concept of living not just a longer healthier more satisfying life but also to the prospect of living or holidaying in this beautiful location in the sunny Algarve region which was recently voted the best retirement destination in the world.

This development is intended to be totally self sufficient and sustainable in all other areas, starting with our own underground freshwater resources, our own waste and sewage system, air source heat pump systems powered by the solar energy system will be used for hot water heating as well as for the minimal cooling and heating requirements for the accommodation units, rain water harvesting will supply field and greenhouse irrigation, we will also be composting  all our organic waste which will be returned to the land as fertiliser.

The other main area of self sufficiency and sustainability will come from the organic permaculture farm on which the hotel is centrally located, the farm will eventually provide the majority of the food requirements for the hotel guests, with free range eggs and chickens, other animals such as goats for their healthier milk and alpacas for their wool and their cuteness, a small lake below the hotel will be stocked with a variety of fish, our 1500 metre river frontage can also be a source of fresh and salt water fish.

The whole ethos of the project will be based on being 100% eco friendly, maintaining a sustainable low environmental impact at all times, the type of clients that will form the core of our guests and long term residents will also have green eco friendly credentials that will help minimise the impact on the locality whilst adding their own brand of consumer awareness for the benefit of the depleting resources of the planet, we will also be teaching guests the art of growing healthy nutritious organic food and how to truly live a sustainable eco friendly low impact and a less materialistic lifestyle.

A phase 2 planning application for additional eco lodges up to our agreed construction limit will be submitted when the initial hotel complex is nearing completion, these individual units will be located on the lower sloping terrain with some overlooking the lake area, these eco lodges will be carefully placed within the existing landscape to give the impression of a local village community as was suggested in consultation with the architects department at Castro Marim, Camara.

As custodians of this beautiful un spoilt river valley farm land,  The Odeleite River Valley Eco Centre  will work closely with REN, Reserva Ecológica Nacional and Natura 2000 network to manage the local biological system and wildlife habitat not just for the benefit of the local flora and fauna and all wildlife in general but also for the benefit of the human interaction within this localised ecosystem whilst at all times respecting the laws of nature and the natural world.