1. Ecolodge Engineering
in Eastern and Southern Africa
Master’ Thesis in Environmental Engineering and Management
Bauhaus Universität Weimar
Examiner: Dr. Prof. Werner Bidlingmaier
Author: Chris Rollins, B.S.
4500 Business Park Boulevard, Suite C-10
Anchorage, Alaska 99503
USA
+1-907-351-2423
cebengineering@gmail.com

2. CONTENTS
Introduction to Ecolodges ...................................................................................................................... 4
Sustainable tourism and economic development in poor countries..................................................... 5
What is an ecolodge? ......................................................................................................................... 6
Ecolodges and Community Based Organizations ............................................................................... 7
The ecolodge ‘problem’ ...................................................................................................................... 7
Ecolodge rating systems .................................................................................................................... 8
Role of engineering in ecolodge planning, design, and implementation .............................................. 9
Africa ecoregions ............................................................................................................................. 10
Planning and Project Management ...................................................................................................... 14
Feasibility Study and Financial/Marketing Plan................................................................................. 14
Master Plan ...................................................................................................................................... 15
Environmental Impact Assessment .................................................................................................. 16
Community Involvement ................................................................................................................... 18
Project Management ........................................................................................................................ 19
Performance Assessment .................................................................................................................... 21
Embodied Energy............................................................................................................................. 21
Life Cycle Assessment ..................................................................................................................... 22
Design for Deconstruction ................................................................................................................ 22
‘Buy Local’ ........................................................................................................................................ 23
Monitoring and Evaluation ................................................................................................................ 24
Construction and Materials .................................................................................................................. 26
Material transport ............................................................................................................................. 26
Construction impact.......................................................................................................................... 27
Season and storm water control ....................................................................................................... 27
Tools ................................................................................................................................................ 28
Water and pumping .......................................................................................................................... 28
Generators ....................................................................................................................................... 29
Materials and Techniques ................................................................................................................ 30
Water Supply and Purification .............................................................................................................. 40
Objectives of water treatment ........................................................................................................... 42
Water testing .................................................................................................................................... 45
Water sources .................................................................................................................................. 45
Pretreatment .................................................................................................................................... 47
Sedimentation and Coagulation/Flocculation .................................................................................... 47
Filtration ........................................................................................................................................... 48
Disinfection ...................................................................................................................................... 49
Desalinization ................................................................................................................................... 51
Waste Water Treatment ....................................................................................................................... 54
Grey water recycling......................................................................................................................... 57
Ecosanitation.................................................................................................................................... 59
Composting toilets ............................................................................................................................ 60
Biogas .............................................................................................................................................. 62
Septic tank ....................................................................................................................................... 65

3. Grease trap ...................................................................................................................................... 67
Subsurface wastewater infiltration system ........................................................................................ 68
Package plants................................................................................................................................. 68
Intermittent sand filters ..................................................................................................................... 69
Constructed wetland......................................................................................................................... 70
Percolation test ................................................................................................................................ 72
Solid Waste Management .................................................................................................................... 73
Segregation Area ............................................................................................................................. 73
Composting ...................................................................................................................................... 74
Incineration ...................................................................................................................................... 74
Landfilling ......................................................................................................................................... 76
Removal ........................................................................................................................................... 76
Hot Water Supply................................................................................................................................. 77
Solar ................................................................................................................................................ 78
Tankless water heater ...................................................................................................................... 82
Electric ............................................................................................................................................. 83
Wood fired boiler .............................................................................................................................. 83
Electrical System ................................................................................................................................. 86
Calculating load................................................................................................................................ 86
Generator ......................................................................................................................................... 87
Photovoltaics .................................................................................................................................... 90
Wind................................................................................................................................................. 92
Microhydro ....................................................................................................................................... 93
Hybrid System .................................................................................................................................. 96
Glossary .............................................................................................................................................. 98
Appendices ........................................................................................................................................ 107
Planning ......................................................................................................................................... 107
Site Selection Matrix....................................................................................................................... 111
Materials energy costs ................................................................................................................... 112
Project schedule............................................................................................................................. 113
Tool list........................................................................................................................................... 114
Generator Efficiency ....................................................................................................................... 115
Concrete Mixes by Volume and Use .............................................................................................. 116
CEB Block Cost Comparison.......................................................................................................... 117
Erosion Control Measures .............................................................................................................. 118
Biogas Digester .............................................................................................................................. 120
Grease Trap ................................................................................................................................... 121
Septic Tank .................................................................................................................................... 121
Water Tank .................................................................................................................................... 122
Bibliography ....................................................................................................................................... 123

4. INTRODUCTION TO ECOLODGES
This document intends to elaborate, analyze, and recommend best practices for the technical
components of remote tourist facilities in the eastern and southern regions of Africa, or so-called
‘ecolodges.’ A remote lodge with a high level of service can be described in many ways, as a village, an
economy, a mass balance equation, or even a machine, and a borrowing of some terminology from
various fields allows one to best describe and dissect the thing; likewise, terms from different disciplines
are necessary to attempt optimization, including life-cycle energy analysis, financial cash flow, the water
cycle, and project management.
Photo 1 Bua River Lodge, Malawi. Photo 2 Kizingo Ecolodge, Lamu.
Photo 3 Lukwe Ecocamp, Malawi. Photo 4 Tongole Lodge, Malawi.
Ecotourism is defined as “Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and
improves the welfare of local people” 1. Ecotourism was first described in 1983 by the Mexican Architect
Héctor Ceballos-Lascuráin, and since that date it has steadily become an ever larger share of the
international tourism market. Although ecotourism is a relatively new part of the tourism industry, it is
1
The International Ecotourism Society, TIES Global Ecotourism Fact Sheet, 2006.
4

5. perceived as a viable mechanism for future development for poor communities in many parts of the
world that otherwise have few economic opportunities due to poor infrastructure, remoteness of location,
and lack of local skills or high value products. This is particularly true in Africa, where many other
economic development strategies have failed, although the overall economic impact of ecolodges
compared to other rural economic schemes will not be investigated here.
The term ‘ecolodge’ is a still imprecise term, but it can generally be described as a remote tourist facility
which promotes ecotourism. Because such facilities are unregulated and there is not yet an
internationally recognized accreditation scheme, many facilities appropriate the word as a marketing tool
while utilizing few, if any, of the qualities and processes of an ecolodge. Indeed, the creation of a true
ecolodge in a remote area can be very difficult and expensive, due to the extra planning, community
involvement, infrastructure, and monitoring required to minimize negative impacts while promoting
positive benefits.
For the purpose of this exercise, an ecolodge will be described as ‘remote,’ meaning away from an
improved road, and without electrical or water and wastewater mains connection. Such facilities may or
may not have communications access, including mobile phone and internet network, which will also be
investigated. In researching this text, some lodge facilities are given as examples for a particular facet
though they may not be ‘remote’ as defined; for example, it is common for a facility to have electrical
mains without a water and wastewater connection.
This thesis will explore the ecolodge phenomenon from the engineering perspective, including standards
and evaluation methods; planning and design; project management and construction; structural,
mechanical, and electrical systems; and operations. Although no perfect ecolodge does exist, or
possibly can exist, an assortment of lodge components will attempt to convey real world examples of
exemplary methods and systems. Furthermore, a series of tools for ecolodge engineering, including life
cycle costing, engineering equations and tabular examples, and specific products and techniques, is
included to guide the reader on technical decision making for ecolodge planning and construction.
Sustainable tourism and economic development in poor countries
The UN World Tourism Organization estimates that international tourism generated € 642 billion ($944
billion) in 2008 2, and in 2007, receipts for developing countries (low income, lower and upper middle
income countries) amounted to US$ 319 billion, and was the largest source of foreign exchange
earnings in a majority of Least Developed Countries 3. A part of this sector defined as ‘Sustainable
Tourism’ is identified by the World Tourism Organization as a means to alleviate poverty (especially for
people in remote areas living on less than $1 per day), conserve the environment, and create jobs.
Sustainable Tourism has the following features, according to the Cape Town Declaration on
Responsible Tourism 4 (features with importance to this document are in italics):
• minimizes negative economic, environmental, and social impacts
• generates greater economic benefits for local people and enhances the well-being of host
communities, improves working conditions and access to the industry
2
www.unwto.org
3
www.unwto.org
4
www.icrtourism.org
5

6. • involves local people in decisions that affect their lives and life chances
• makes positive contributions to the conservation of natural and cultural heritage, to the
maintenance of the world’s diversity
• provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists through more meaningful connections with local
people, and a greater understanding of local cultural, social and environmental issues
• provides access for physically challenged people and
• is culturally sensitive, engenders respect between tourists and hosts, and builds local pride and
confidence.
The UN World Tourism Organization “Sustainable Tourism – Eliminating Poverty” (ST-EP) program has
identified 7 steps by which the poor can benefit directly through tourism 5 (features with importance to
this document are in italics):
• Employment of the poor in tourism enterprises
• Supply of goods and services to tourism enterprises by the poor or by enterprises employing the
poor.
• Direct sales of goods and services to visitors by the poor (informal economy)
• Establishment and running of tourism enterprises by the poor - e.g. micro, small and medium
sized enterprises (MSMEs), or community based enterprises (formal economy)
• Tax or levy on tourism income or profits with proceeds benefiting the poor
• Voluntary giving/support by tourism enterprises and tourists
• Investment in infrastructure stimulated by tourism also benefiting the poor in the locality, directly
or through support to other sectors
What is an ecolodge?
According to the International Ecolodge Guidelines, Hitesh Mehta, a leading ecolodge architect, states
that an ecolodge can be defined as ‘an accommodation facility that displays at least five of the following
criteria’ 6 (features with technical importance to the engineer are in italics):
• Helps in the conservation of the surrounding flora and fauna.
• Endeavors to work together with the local community
• Offers interpretive programs to educate both its employees and tourists about the surrounding
natural and cultural environments
• Uses alternative, sustainable means of water acquisition and reduces water consumption
• Provides for careful handling and disposal of solid waste and sewage
• Meets its energy needs through passive design and renewable energy sources
• Uses traditional building technology and materials wherever possible and combines these with
their modern counterparts for greater sustainability.
• Has minimal impact on the natural surroundings during construction
• Fits into its specific physical and cultural contexts through careful attention to form, landscaping
and color, as well as the use of vernacular architecture
• Contributes to sustainable local community development through education programs and
research.
5
ST-EP "Tourism and Poverty Alleviation: Recommendations for Action"
6
Mehta, International Ecolodge Guidelines, pg. 5
6

7. An ideal ecolodge might thus be one that incorporates more than five, or even all, of these criteria. Such
a facility would have minimum electricity, heat, refrigeration, and waste requirements, and it would
minimize other impact on the surroundings such as noise or emissions. Indeed, this could describe
many remote villages in Africa where the residents have no power, refrigeration, or hot water (an
exception is cooking, which is typically performed with charcoal or other emissions intensive and
unreplenished biomass material).
Some ‘cultural village’ tourism complexes do exist, and they are becoming more common: examples
include the Kawaza Cultural Village near Mfuwe, Zambia, Kumbali Cultural Village in Lilongwe, Malawi,
or the Mida Creek Ecocamp near Watamu, Kenya. However, they are a very small part of the total
ecolodge market, and more typical is a higher end facility with more complex cuisine, hot showers, and
cold beer. Cultural villages do exemplify the community element of ecolodge operation, which should be
integral to any remote establishment, whatever the drink temperature.
Ecolodges and Community Based Organizations
An outgrowth of this emphasis on the local community in ecotourism and ecolodge operation is the
inclusion of Community Based Organizations (CBO’s) in many such businesses, some of which are
majority or wholly owned by local communities. Community Based Ecotourism is a tourism concept
where “the local community has substantial control over, and involvement in, its development and
management, and a major proportion of the benefits remain within the community.” 7 This can benefit
the community through sustainable livelihood (i.e. job creation), to involve the community more actively
with conservation (the ‘poacher to safari guide’ paradigm), and to generate a positive relationship
between the community and protected areas 8. Indeed, in Africa the establishment of many protected
areas required the expropriation of local peoples, destroying their livelihoods and leaving their
descendants destitute and resentful (including, for example the gazetting of Tsavo East National Park in
Kenya, which displaced the elephant hunting tribe of the Garyama people, who both lost their land and
their historical livelihood in 1952); in this light, a CBO can be considered a modern means to repair a
severed relationship between a particular geography and its former inhabitants.
The ecolodge ‘problem’
From an engineering perspective, an ecolodge presents a unique opportunity to promote the best of
local architectural and construction practices as well as minimal impact water, mechanical, and power
systems. However, the necessity to provide a luxurious visitor experience can often conflict with this
philosophy, and therein lays the greatest technical difficulties for these endeavors. A holistic solution to
this is typically not cheap, and often combines the latest in high technology (for example photovoltaic
energy generation coupled with low energy Light Emitting Diode (LED) lighting) with much simpler and
inexpensive solutions (such as constructed wetlands for water polishing after rudimentary treatment).
While early ecolodges in Costa Rica and Central America catered to the backpacker-style tourist
comfortable with basic amenities such as cold showers or paraffin lamps, a newer marketing strategy
has recently attracted the wealthier visitor to such destinations. This has resulted in the phenomenon of
the ‘luxury ecolodge’ which still purports to adhere to the principles of sustainable tourism while charging
7
Guidelines for Community Based Ecotourism Development, WWF International, 2001, pg. 2
8
Guidelines for Community Based Ecotourism Development, WWF International, 2001, pg.4
7

8. $400-2000 per night and providing visitors everything from heated plunge pools to high speed internet.
While one can easily dismiss such trappings as counter to the ecolodge philosophy, in the tourism
market they are common and cannot be ignored. Rather, an attempt should be made to lessen the
impact of whatever elaborate systems are demanded by the client. In the future, perhaps a stringent
international ecolodge rating system will resolve this apparent disparity.
Ecolodge rating systems
Because of the recent ubiquity of ecotourism and the ease with which any lodge operator can
appropriate the term ‘ecolodge’ for marketing purposes, several organizations throughout the world have
established ecolodge rating schemes for local or international projects. These groups include the Costa
Rican Certification for Sustainable Tourism (CST), the Australia EcoCertification (formerly the Nature
and Ecotourism Accreditation Program, or NEAP), the Ecotourism Society of Kenya (ESOK) EcoRating
Scheme, the Namibia EcoAward, the Botswana Ecotourism Best Practices Guidelines Manual, and the
World Travel and Tourism Council’s Green Globe 21 (GG21) international standard.
While much of the evaluation criteria in these schemes is proprietary and not disclosed publicly (perhaps
to avoid lodges trying to ‘game the system’), it is likely that in the future a transparent and international
system will be established which plainly ranks various options for lodge performance and systems. Until
that time, the various systems can be used as general guide for the designer undertaking an effort at
minimal environmental impact.
The Kenya Forestry Service has a concise approach to Ecolodge evaluation 9:
1. Is there a written policy regarding the environment and local people?
2. What is the single contribution to conservation or local people that has been put in place?
3. How is the contribution to conservation and local communities measured?
4. How many local people are in employment and what percentage of this total is in management?
5. What has specifically been done to help protect the forest, environment and support
conservation and which local charities have been involved?
6. What percentage of produce and services are sourced from within 25 km of the facility?
7. How is the treatment of waste handled – effluent, heating, solid waste etc?
8. What information and advice is provided to tourists and visitors on the forest, the local cultures
and customs?
9. Are local guides employed at the facility?
10. What guidelines and methods are put in place on how visitors can interact and get involved in
worthwhile ways and projects on forestry and with local communities and conservation?
The Ecotourism Society of Kenya uses the following open guideline 10:
1. Protecting, conserving and investing in the environment
2. Minimizing & reducing wastes
3. Preventing pollution
4. Encouraging linkages with local communities
5. Responsible use of resources such as land, water, energy, culture etc
9
10 ways to tell if an Ecolodge is a really an Ecotourist facility
10
Ecotourism Kenya website
8

9. 6. Education to tourists
The Botswana Ecotourism Best Practices Guidelines Manual contains the following guidelines 11:
1. Use of local construction materials
2. Employment of local residents to operate and in some cases manage the facility
3. Integration of water and energy conservation technologies
4. Participation and involvement with local communities in various aspects of the visitor experience
5. A portion of profits are returned to community and conservation projects
6. Use of waste water treatment techniques and recycling
7. Use of various waste management schemes including composting, recycling, etc.
8. Use of fresh food which is purchased locally and is typically organic
Role of engineering in ecolodge planning, design, and implementation
Based on these premises, the engineer has three primary technical inputs unique to an ecolodge facility,
in addition to the normal engineering requirements of planning, structural and mechanical systems
design, construction observation, project management, and cost estimating/scheduling:
• Lodge materials and construction methods evaluation
• Lodge systems, energy inputs, and wastes minimization
• Lodge operation and monitoring standards
Lodge materials include the selection of materials for foundations, walls, doors and windows, and roof,
as well as design features to minimize impact on the surrounding area. Lodge construction input
requires minimal impact on surrounding areas during the construction operations in terms of noise,
emissions, erosion, and siltation. Construction technique is also important from the technical
perspective, as the use of manual labor in place of power tools and machinery can both facilitate
increased skill in the local community and reduce noise and emissions. On the other hand, though, it
can result in greater total impact to the site due to increased number of people on site (and the requisite
cooking, washing, and bathing), as well as lower construction quality.
Lodge systems include electricity, water supply, water purification, hot water, waste water, solid wastes,
cooking, transport, and communications. Energy input for each of these is a combination of loads,
efficiencies of the system, and the type of energy source, whether solar, biomass, or petroleum. Wastes
criteria are a combination of reduction of waste production, on site waste processing, and waste removal
in sensitive areas.
Lodge operation is a combination of the previous inputs with the added complexity of dynamic use while
the lodge is running. This will require periodic technical review to actually quantify how efficiently the
lodge is operating according to visitor numbers, and to identify problem areas or improvements.
Processes to monitor include water usage, operating costs, waste production, transportation fuel
quantities, and efficiency changes during seasonal variation in lodge occupancy, solar gain, water
supply, and ambient temperature.
11
Ecotourism Best Practices Guidelines Manual, pgs. 14-15.
9

10. Africa ecoregions
An ecoregion is defined by the World Wildlife Fund as “a large unit of land or water containing a
geographically distinct assemblage of species, natural communities, and environmental conditions.”
Additionally, these natural communities:
• share a large majority of their species and ecological dynamics;
• share similar environmental conditions, and;
• interact ecologically in ways that are critical for their long-term persistence.
Eastern and Southern Africa contains the following biomes:
• Temperate coniferous forests
• Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests
• Montane grasslands
• Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
• Mediterranean scrub
• Deserts and xeric shrublands
• Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests
• Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
• Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests
• Flooded grasslands
10

11. Figure 1 Copyright 2005, Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Hofstra University, Dept. of Economics & Geography
11

12. For the purpose of this document, the following three main categories are divided into five ‘typical’ sites
for ecolodge development:
• Terrestrial (land)
o Mountain
o Savannah
o Desert
• Freshwater
o Lake
o River
• Marine
Mountain
Mountain areas with tourist facilities are very common and include the Nyika and Zomba Plateaus in
Malawi; the Volcanoes region of Uganda, Rwanda, and DRC; Mt. Kenya and Mt. Kilamanjaro; and the
Drakensburg in South Africa. Mountains enjoy perhaps the most favorable conditions for ecolodge
development. The topography typically means increased rainfall, and this rain can be collected such
that gravity delivery and distribution is possible both to and within the lodge. Borehole water may be
seasonal, depending on geology of the area. Wind power may be viable at the right location, and very
small scale hydro power (i.e. ‘pico-hydro’) can also be employed, though this is often considerably
expensive compared to wind or solar PV.
• PV may not be viable due to cloud cover
• Wind may be an option
• Possibilities for hydropower, though this is expensive
• Water sources may be available with spring box + gravity feed
Savannah
Savannah or plains areas include the Serengeti and Mara in Tanzania and Kenya; the Kalahari of
Botswana and the Karoo of South Africa. Savannah is the far largest area by type in this part of the
continent, and lodges may vary tremendously in individual geographical and climatic character.
• Water from borehole and rooftop collection
• PV + wind typical for power generation
Desert
Desert lodges, such as those of Namibia, will have unique constraints:
• Water will be from boreholes, and this may require energy intensive pumping and treatment.
• Traditional construction materials, such as wood and thatch may be unavailable locally and may
shrink significantly in arid conditions, although rotting will not be a problem.
• Heating/cooling loads may require large power sources (i.e. diesel generators)
Lake
Lakes include the Great Lakes (Victoria, Tanganyika, Malawi, Kivu) as well as smaller bodies of water.
Lakeside lodges enjoy a perennial water source, though this may require seasonal or year round
12

13. flocculation. This water must be pumped, requiring electrical inputs. Electricity options include PV and
wind, usually in combination due to seasonal changes in wind speed.
• Water purification from lake is typically coarse filtering, flocculation, filtering, UV or chlorination
• Boreholes may be difficult to install and maintain in sand
• Wind power may be viable
• Wastewater treatment is important before discharge
River
River lodges are found within other biomes (i.e. savannah, mountain, desert), and also enjoy a perennial
water source. River water tends to vary considerably in quality throughout the year, and this may place
high demands on the technical skill of the operations personnel. In many cases, a borehole may be a
preferred option to river water filtration due to the lower maintenance of the system, despite the higher
initial cost.
• Water purification from river may be poor due to high turbidity in the rainy season
Marine
Marine lodges are to be found throughout the Indian Ocean coast. These vary from the basic to the
massive and in both size and service, but all share a critical need: fresh water. Some sites enjoy a fresh
water ‘lens’ which floats on a salt layer due to its lower relative density. Such locations are rare, and
should be actively conserved so as to not destroy the balance. In many cases, desalination is the only
option if the site is remote; otherwise water might be hauled or pumped at a lower cost. In almost all,
reuse of grey water is critical for landscaping and any other high volume water uses.
• Water use monitoring is very important, and desalinization may be necessary
• Rainwater collection can be cost efficient
• Waste treatment may be low priority if groundwater is already not potable
Other factors are important for sighting a marine ecolodge 12:
• Avoid damaging attributes including mangroves, wetlands, dunes, estuaries, historical sites,
sacred or culturally significant sites, nesting and habitat sites for marine reptiles, mammals and
seabirds.
• Site the lodge in a location where minimal coastal terrain will need to be modified.
• If facilities must be built on the beach (in front of the dune) consider low investment, non-
permanent buildings. These buildings can be removed before storms and rebuilt afterwards.
• Minimize vegetation clearance and maintain tree and dune vegetation cover.
• Incorporate areas to maintain a buffer zone or “set back” between the shoreline and facility.
• Site piers in water deep enough to accommodate boats rather than relying on dredging. Floating
docking systems may prove to be a more environmentally sensitive alternative to traditional piling
construction techniques.
• Site marinas in areas that will maximize the exchange of water through natural flows and tides.
• Avoid outward-facing lighting on shoreline, especially in areas where wildlife could be impacted.
12
Halpenny, 45, 48.
13

14. PLANNING AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Feasibility Study and Financial/Marketing Plan
A feasibility study is a study of whether a business opportunity is possible, practical, and viable, and
how difficult its realization will be. It will consider both the positive and negative impacts of the project
and consider financial, logistical, ecological, and cultural factors. In many cases, lodge concessions
may be created by a government agency without a thorough determination of these factors relative to
the project, and therefore the team considering the project must conduct this activity in-house. A
feasibility study should also be conducted when acquiring an existing concession, to determine if the
anticipated renovation or upgrading investment has a reasonable return.
A feasibility study will include the following features for an ecolodge 13:
1. Situation and Competition
a. Number, capacity, and location of competition.
b. If no competing lodges are in operation, were they operating previously? Why did they
discontinue? Are these reasons still valid?
c. Estimate percent utilization of existing lodge capacities. Will the new lodge increase
capacities or pull visitors from existing facilities?
d. Level of service, operating costs and technology in competing lodges?
2. Facility Requirements
a. Site - Location, zoning, or other restrictions, space of expansion, tax considerations
b. Access to transportation– highway and air connections, travel time to regional or national
cities, proximity to other lodges or facilities
c. Access to waste and sewage disposal facilities
d. Utilities– availability, restrictions or special conditions, rates
3. Buildings and Equipment
a. Existing buildings and equipment – cost and difficulty to upgrade or demolish.
b. New facilities and equipment – cost and difficulty to build and operate
Planning for a lodge should be foremost considered from the economic perspective, to ensure that the
facility can both cover its own expenses and also produce a profit, whether that is a return to private
investors, to a local community, or to the park or natural area around the lodge. This plan should also
contain a vision statement, so that the idea is both subjectively and pragmatically described in early
stages so as to clearly define the project goals, assist in later planning decisions, and to attract funding
or industry interest. This marketing plan can contain the following components 14:
1. Project Description – schematic drawings and plans, infrastructure requirements, land use
planning, and proposed phases of project.
2. Market Information – tourism assessment of the area, and a definition of how this project intends
to complement, expand, or improve existing tourism
13
NXLevel
14
Littlefield, 6-1,6-2.
14

15. 3. Strategic Business Plan – a detailed plan describing the existing state of the project, the
development strategy, and a schedule.
4. Project Economics – assessment of project costs, projected returns, and how these assumptions
were made.
5. Company Profile – senior management, the construction and/or operations team, and any
particular information relevant to the group initiating the project.
6. Development Program – details of number of units, operating costs, energy requirements, staff
requirements, water needs, waste generation, etc.
Alternatively, the Botswana Tourism Board describes a detailed layout for creating an Ecotourism
Business plan as follows 15:
1. Executive Summary
2. Description of the Company (operators, owner)
3. Ecotourism Business Description
4. Ecotourism Market Analysis including Competition Analysis
5. Marketing Study and Visitor Projections
6. Operational Plan
7. Management Structure and Organization
8. Financial Plan and Projections
9. Monitoring and Evaluation
10. Appendices
Master Plan
A master plan is a formal statement of the project’s goals and objectives, including future growth. This
is critical for operation of a resort in a remote area where no existing facilities are in place. The master
plan will outline the vision and policies of the facility, as well as the practical methods to achieve these.
The master plan should include both financial and technical details, as well as scheduling information for
incremental construction and development of the area. The establishment of such a plan will not only
include the intended expansion of the facility but also include contingencies for possible reductions in
visitor numbers. Additionally, this document should include an Environmental Impact Statement and
possibly a Social Impact Statement (see relevant sections).
Resort Planning Steps
1. Feasibility/Programming – general review of the proposed facility and existing site conditions,
with emphasis on environmental, cultural, and infrastructure assets.
2. Site Analysis – inventory materials on site, topographic survey, identify useable site areas,
prepare foundation for further design steps with adequate base mapping and establishment of
project goals.
3. Conceptual Design – initial organization and depiction of the development
4. Schematic Design – refinement of concept sketches with scale, dimensions, and definition of site
details, including building arrangements and infrastructure systems.
15
Botswana Tourism Board, 35-39.
15

16. 5. Final Design – enhancement of schematic design to level of detail necessary for materials
specification and quantities, scheduling, and construction.
6. Master Planning & Documentation – assembly of relevant documents plus Environmental Impact
Statement, permits, and financial/business plan into a coherent reference.
7. Construction – will also include revisions to plan documents due to changes, on-site inspections,
and writing of operations guides.
The two most critical, and expensive, components of a lodge will be electricity and water. The electrical
system is the more costly of the two when a high level of western accoutrement is provided, such as in
room outlets, high speed internet, and a wider selection of foods and drinks, which must be frozen or
refrigerated. In a PV system this will increase the necessary number of batteries and panels, and with a
generator system it will increase the size and noise of the generator, increasing fuel consumption as well
as the distance from the clients necessary to keep the area quiet, resulting in higher transmission
losses.
The water system can be constructed relatively cheaply in comparison, but hot water requirements will
increase expenditure whether for solar hot water panels or for electric geysers. Pumping of water will
also drive up costs.
Environmental Impact Assessment
An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process by which information about the
environmental impacts of a project are collected, both by the developer and from other sources, and
taken into account by the relevant decision making body before a decision is given on whether the
development should proceed 16. The EIA can also be a critical tool in deciding where to actually place
the lodge (though in practice this is often merely an aesthetic decision).
EC Directive (85/337/EEC) (as amended) - Article 3 17 - The environmental impact assessment shall
identify, describe and assess in an appropriate manner, in the light of each individual case and in
accordance with the Articles 4 to 11, the direct and indirect effects of a project on the following factors:
1. human beings, fauna and flora,
2. soil, water, air, climate and the landscape,
3. material assets and cultural heritage,
4. the inter-action between the factors mentioned in the first and second indents.
EC Directive 96/61/EC - Article 2 18 - For the purposes of this Directive:
• ‘pollution’ shall mean the direct or indirect introduction as a result of human activity, of
substances, vibrations, heat or noise into the air, water or land which may be harmful to human
health or the quality of the environment, result in damage to material property, or impair or
interfere with amenities and other legitimate uses of the environment.
• ‘emission’ shall mean the direct or indirect releases of substances, vibrations, heat or noise from
individual or diffuse sources in the installation into the air, water or land.
16
European Commission:Directorate-General XI (Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection), Glossary.
17
European Commission (EC), 1.
18
EC, 4.
16

17. Several methods are available for conducting an EIA 19. The method chosen should be based on the
nature of the impact, the availability and quality of data, and the availability of resources to conduct the
study 20:
1. Expert Opinion - means of identifying and assessing indirect and cumulative impacts and impact
interactions. Panels can be formed to facilitate exchange of information.
2. Consultations and Questionnaires - A means of gathering information about a wide range of
actions, including those in the past, present and future which may influence the impacts of a
project.
3. Checklists - Provide a systematic way of ensuring that all likely events resulting from a project
are considered.
4. Matrices - A more complex form of checklist. Can be used quantitatively and can evaluate
impacts to some degree. Can be extended to consider the cumulative impacts of multiple actions
on a resource.
5. Spatial Analysis - Uses Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and overlay maps to identify
where the cumulative impacts of a number of different actions may occur, and impact iterations.
Can also superimpose a project’s effect on selected receptors or resources to establish areas
where impacts would be most significant. The ‘Spatial and Network Analysis’ method of
ecosystem interactions is appropriate for modern ecolodge development, and contains the
following steps 21:
a. Define the study area for the assessment.
b. Undertake baseline surveys and consultations. Determine sensitive areas and
ecosystem types within the study area.
c. Carryout network analysis for ecosystem types and refine the extent of the sensitive
areas.
d. Overlay lodge, road, pathway, and other route options onto the study area and assess
impacts of options.
e. Determine the route and lodging option with the least environmental impacts on the
sensitive areas
6. Network and Systems Analysis - Based on the concept that there are links and interaction
pathways between individual elements of the environment, and that when one element is
specifically affected this will also have an effect on those elements which interact with it.
7. Carrying Capacity Analysis - Based on the recognition that thresholds exist in the environment.
Projects can be assessed in relation to the carrying capacity or threshold determined, together
with additional activities.
8. Modeling - An analytical tool which enables the quantification of cause-and-effect relationships
by simulating environmental conditions. This can range from air quality or noise modeling, to use
of a model representing a complex natural system.
19
EC, Table 3.1.
20
EC, 20.
21
EC, 46, A2-38.
17

18. Community Involvement
In many lodges which purport to be community based, this local involvement is effectively an
afterthought, in that the local community is not engaged until completion of the facility, at which time the
local leaders are approached for the purpose of starting a school, hiring staff, or initiating other
programs. Because many lodges are located on former traditional lands of these local communities, this
approach may reinforce feelings of expropriation among local people. A better technique is to involve
the local community from the start, so that they understand the economic, cultural, and conservation
benefits of the facility, and can perhaps participate in its planning and development, so that their own
interests are not just recognized but optimized. The Botswana Tourism Board describes some actions
to take in this regard 22:
• Meet with the leadership of all communities within 20 km.
• Meet with all tribal groups within 40 km of the ecotourism facility and particularly those living in
the concession.
• Identify particular community issues (poverty, HIV/AIDS, literacy, etc.) where the operator can
contribute to skill and awareness development.
• Identify local labor and skill sets
• Identify and discuss with local contractors and suppliers of construction materials, food and
beverage, guide services, etc.
A Social Impact Statement (SIA) can also be generated to evaluate impacts on the community.
Although this is not so clearly defined and recognized as the EIA, a formal study can be conducted to
define and evaluate the proposed effects of the lodge on the local human population. Questions to
include in such research include the following 23:
• How are individuals within each community affected/involved? Detail number of inhabitants,
ethnicity and gender, income type and level, and social and political structures.
• Who controls/coordinates at the community level?
• What are the benefits the project will bring to the community? Benefits include employment,
income, improved standards of health, education, and nutrition, and improved environmental
conditions.
• What are the anticipated distribution and level of benefits and costs? Who will benefit and who
will lose from the new facility?
• What are the projected positive and negative impacts on the community as a whole? Changes
include resource use patterns, cultural traditions, educational levels, socioeconomic conditions,
and political and organizational structures? Are conflicts likely?
• What likely effects will the change in land use patterns caused by the investment have on
nutrition and health?
• What changes are desirable?
22
Botswana Tourism Board, 27.
23
Nature Conservancy, 9.
18

19. Project Management
Modern project management techniques are the means by which to control the scope, costs, and
schedule for the ecolodge construction and operational opening. A project is a temporary endeavor
undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result 24 (ecolodge operations, on the other hand, are
ongoing ‘processes,’ and do not fit into the definition of a project). By properly defining the scope of the
project, managing project resources, and identifying and minimizing risks, the project manager will enjoy
a smoother construction experience. With intensive application of project management techniques,
these resources will be optimized, resulting in lower construction costs and time. Projects have the
following characteristics 25:
1. A project is carried out only once for an exceptional case.
2. A project has a fixed start date and deadline.
3. Every project has a clearly formulated purpose (scope), usually solving a unique problem or the
development of a unique idea.
Furthermore, every project will have these activities 26:
1. Decisions concerning project results, impacts, and resources.
2. Work outputs including construction and systems development.
3. Managing the resources of time, budget, information and project staff, and controlling quality.
The management of these activities is called project management – the application of knowledge, skill,
tools and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements 27. Projects are typically
divided into ‘phases’ to provide better management control. Phases are usually sequential and are
defined by finishing of various technical components, defined by completion and approval of a project
‘deliverable.’ Linear phasing is common to infrastructure projects 28, and this can be divided in the
following five phases:
1. Initiating phase – project manager and the client agree on the result and the project plan.
2. Defining phase – a definition of the end result; with a schedule of requirements.
3. Design phase – production of a detailed design.
4. Preparation phase –signed contracts with a contractor or a detailed implementation plan for force
account works.
5. Implementation phase – construction.
After project phasing, a work plan is developed for the project, with more detail concerning phase
activities that are to proceed immediately. A Gant chart is a typical work plan layout that details activity
durations over time, with specific relationships between activities:
1. Finish-to-Start - FS - Activity B cannot start until Activity A finishes.
2. Start-to-Start - SS - Activity B cannot start until activity A starts.
3. Finish-to-Finish - FF - Activity B cannot finish until activity A finishes.
24
Project Management Institute, 5.
25
Van Rijn, 4.
26
Van Rijn, 4.
27
Project Management Institute, 8.
28
Van Rijn, 6.
19

20. 4. Start-to-Finish - SF - Activity B cannot finish until activity A starts.
5. Lag Time – duration between activities, such as for concrete curing.
An example Gant Chart can be found in the Appendices. Useful software for managing projects and
producing visual charts and schedules include MS Project, MS Visio, and Primavera.
Risk management is another important component of project management. The process of risk
management seeks to identify and quantify various risks to the project, while also establishing clear
reactions to minimize these problems. A risk is the combination of the likelihood that an adverse event
will take place and the consequences of the adverse event 29:
Risk = Likelihood • Consequences
Typical risks to an ecolodge construction project include the following:
• Cost overruns, especially for cement
• Time overruns due to material transport, weather, absenteeism, worker strike, or illness
• Unacceptable quality and need to redo work (especially concrete)
• Inability to deliver materials due to road conditions (during rainy season) or vehicle size
(especially with long timbers for roof construction)
• Weather events include extreme precipitation, prolonged rainy season, flooding, and fire
• Health and safety, especially malaria, sleeping sickness, snake bite, and animal encounters
• Unavailability of tools or materials in the marketplace at critical times
• Lack of water for construction works, especially concrete and masonry
• Governmental actions such as changes to concession agreement, import duties, etc.
One way to mitigate material risks is with the use of secure onsite storage (such as a locked 20’ or 40’
shipping container), with materials purchased before they are needed to both ensure availability, reduce
delivery delays, and possibly avoid inflation, which can occur rapidly during the African construction
season.
Cost estimating is another critical component of project management. In addition to detailed estimates
for construction based on a ‘Bill of Quantities’ from the construction drawings, the project manager will
also have to estimate the following requirements30:
• Site management costs
• Offices, sheds, and storage
• Access roads
• Transport of workers (if off site)
• Housing for workers (if on site)
• Food, water and sanitation for workers
• Health and safety provisions
• Insurance and bonds
• Tools and electrical service
• Vehicle maintenance and fueling
A responsible project manager will establish an accurate project schedule and budget using these
standards, with a detailed list of risks and alternative solutions.
29
Van Rijn, 15.
30
Van Rijn, 30.
20

21. PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT
Typically, there are no established ‘green building’ standards in Africa, though there are some Ecolodge
certification schemes, such as the Ecotourism Kenya system or the Botswana Ecotourism Certification
System. Additionally, material and fixture availability will be limited if a container of materials is not
imported. Still, some amount of evaluation can be conducted in-house or through consultants to either
select the best available material for construction or to establish documentation of the selected materials
energy/carbon impact. These methods are described below.
Embodied Energy
The Embodied Energy (EE) is the energy required by all of the processes in the production of building
materials, including mining and processing of natural resources, manufacturing, transport, and
installation (Embodied energy does not include disposal of the building material). Operational Energy
is the energy used by the building during use. These concepts can be related, and an increase in
embodied energy may or may not result in a decrease in operational energy. In Africa, where raw
materials are abundant but processing or manufacturing facilities are distant or non-existent, following
the prescriptions for low embodied energy will result in lower purchasing costs, due to the need to import
these materials and transport them long distances on inadequate road infrastructure.
The following guidelines are prepared by the Department of the Environment; Water; Heritage and the
Arts of Australia 31 for reducing embodied energy in home construction, and they are appropriate to
ecolodge projects in Africa:
1. Design for long life and adaptability, using durable low maintenance materials.
2. Modify or refurbish instead of demolishing or adding on.
3. Ensure materials from demolition of existing buildings, and construction wastes are reused or
recycled.
4. Use locally sourced materials (including materials salvaged on site) to reduce transport.
5. Select low embodied energy materials (which may include materials with a high recycled
content) preferably based on supplier-specific data.
6. Avoid wasteful material use.
7. Specify standard sizes, don’t use energy intensive materials as fillers.
8. Ensure off-cuts are recycled and avoid redundant structure, etc. Some very energy intensive
finishes, such as paints, often have high wastage levels.
9. Select materials that can be re-used or recycled easily at the end of their lives using existing
recycling systems.
10. Give preference to materials manufactured using renewable energy sources.
11. Use efficient building envelope design and fittings to minimize materials (e.g. an energy efficient
building envelope can downsize or eliminate the need for heaters and coolers, water-efficient
taps allow downsizing of water pipes).
12. Ask suppliers for information on their products and share this information.
31
Milne, 138.
21

22. Life Cycle Assessment
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is an analytical tool for the environmental impact evaluation of a product
or service system through all stages of its life, from resource extraction, processing and delivery (i.e.
embodied energy) through service life to final disposal or recycling. In LCA, a fundamental concept is
the ‘functional unit,’ where an actual building component unit is specified over a defined time span 32.
Therefore, instead comparing 1 kg concrete to 1kg fired brick for a wall, for example, LCA would include
all the peripheral requirements (plaster, refinishing, different foundation sizing, etc.) as well as any
recycling or demolition inputs necessary after the defined period (i.e. 15 years) of the structure. Instead
of calculating with mass, this would ordinarily be calculated in a unit of square meters. Life Cycle
Costing is a related technique to sum costs associated with an asset, including acquisition, installation,
operation, maintenance, refurbishment, and disposal costs 33.
Useful software for conducting an LCA include GaBi (Germany) and SimaPro (Netherlands), Athena
Environmental Impact Estimator (Canada), BEES (U.S.), and Envest 2 (United Kingdom). However,
Energy costs for materials are very specific to different geographical regions, and as yet no LCA
program has been developed for Africa.
Elements of a LCA are as follows 34:
1. Goal and Scope Definition: The goal and scope for the study are clearly defined.
2. Inventory Analysis: Actual collection of data and the calculation procedures, which are analyzed
and quantified, and produced as a table.
3. Impact Assessment: The impact assessment translates the inventory analysis into environmental
impacts and evaluates their significance. This may require several iterations.
4. Interpretation: In this phase conclusions and recommendations are drawn from the inventory
analysis and the impact assessment.
Design for Deconstruction
Design for Deconstruction (DfD) principles are of particular use in remote ecolodges made of
‘permanent materials’, but which are also situated in natural areas and parks. In a DfD approach, the
life cycle of the materials is emphasized by using durable materials which can be easily recycled. A
simple example of this would be the use of high quality fired bricks or concrete blocks with a lower
quality mortar, so that the blocks can be easily cleaned and reused after deconstruction of the building.
Primary principles for DfD are as follows 35:
1. Reuse existing buildings and materials.
2. Design for durability and adaptability.
3. Design for deconstruction by using less adhesives and sealant
4. Use less material to realize a design
32
Nebel, 5-6
33
Nebel, 14.
34
AS/NZS ISO 14040-14043
35
EPA Pollution Prevention Program Office, 46.
22

23. Other principles are the following 36:
1. Maximize clarity and simplicity of the building design.
2. Use building materials that are worth recovering.
3. Minimize the number of fasteners used when possible.
4. Simplify connections between parts, to enable easier deconstruction.
5. Separate building layers and systems (i.e. mechanical, electrical).
6. Minimize the number of components (i.e. use fewer larger elements).
7. Use modular building components and assemblies.
8. Disentangle utilities from the within the structure’s walls, ceilings, and floors.
9. Provide easy access to components and assemblies (windows, etc).
10. Make connections between components and parts visible and accessible.
Some possible materials and material combinations suitable to building ecolodges in Africa include the
following:
1. Safari tents, i.e. ‘Meru Tents’, on sand foundations with wooden box retaining walls.
2. Stone rubble foundation with 1:3:6 concrete cap (reinforced or unreinforced)
3. 1:4 concrete blocks with 1:6 or 1:8 cement mortar
4. Industrially fired clay bricks with 1:6 or 1:8 cement mortar
5. 1:20 cement stabilized soil blocks with mud mortar
6. Wattle and daub or cob walls
7. Wooden framed walls
8. Unstabilized rammed earth walls or adobe
9. Straw bale walls
10. Thatch roofs
‘Buy Local’
A fundamental component of ecolodges by definition is the stimulation of the local economy, and the
possible displacement of resource extraction from the natural area of interest (such as charcoal making,
poaching, and illegal fishing) to a more efficient and regulated economy elsewhere. In this regard, an
emphasis on local purchase of building materials is essential in fulfilling this go
One could argue that most local technologies are also low-energy and also low-impact, thereby also
fulfilling the goals of low embodied energy and Life Cycle Costing. Generally this is true, though there
are notable exceptions. Primarily, the local firing of bricks has made a devastating impact on forestation
in Africa, and the requirement for large, older trees (for higher fuel content and longer burn times) due to
the lack of suitable fuel alternatives (such as coal dust or recycled oil) might outweigh the other benefits.
In this case, one can make an argument for the use of cement stabilized soil blocks or rammed earth.
Another problematic local resource is river sand, which is commonly extracted at the end of the rainy
season and sold on roadsides throughout Africa. Though this material has almost no embodied energy,
destabilization of the river bank can result in accelerated erosion downstream as well as higher turbidity
which can affect fish populations. Furthermore, river sand is a poor quality concrete component due to
36
EPA Pollution Prevention Program Office, 48-9.
23

24. its small, rounded particle shape and high clay and silt content. However, under controlled
circumstances it can be an excellent resource.
Therefore, if a ‘Buy Local’ policy is to be emphasized, consideration should be given to the effects of
these purchases in sustaining environmentally degrading processes. Possibly, this approach could
result in identification of better alternatives (such as an unused and cheap fuel source for firing bricks or
a better sand quarry in the area) which could be developed and informally ‘certified’ as more ecological.
Monitoring and Evaluation
In a traditional tourism venture, success of the lodge would be determined by conventional financial
measures such as revenues, profit, occupancy, increase in market share, and growth of the business.
These factors are all relevant to an ecolodge, but additional measures should be in place to determine
the benefits to the location in regard to environmental and social criteria. Some methods to achieve this
are described below 37:
• Set overall goals and indicators for environmental performance and the management of natural
and social environments.
• Generate baseline data on environmental and social indicators.
• Implementation of monitoring system such as Limits of Acceptable Change.
• Integration of monitoring results into operations.
Monitoring is the measurement of a set of indicators that are tracked over time, while evaluation is the
regular, periodic assessment of progress against a set of reference values 38. Monitoring can be defined
in a hierarchical cycle 39:
1. Impact - Long term environmental/social/financial change, the ecolodge vision.
2. Outcome (goals) - Medium term change or intermediate success to measure change
3. Output - Immediate results, such as skills and knowledge.
4. Process - Activities undertaken using inputs to produce outputs, with quantifying indicators, such
as frequency. These can include trainings, workshops, and classes, and can be formal or
informal.
5. Inputs – Resources including time, money, people.
A suggested approach to this process is to first establish the vision of the system, and then define
outcomes and outputs. Other tools in the process include reporting, to document processes and
indicators at regular intervals, and feedback, whereby the accomplishment or modification of outcomes
and outputs can be analyzed. Critical to this is the use of indicators, or measurable states that provide
evidence that a certain condition exists or that certain results have or have not been achieved 40.
The International Ecotourism Society developed four ‘components of sustainability’ to serve as
outcomes for a typical ‘sustainable tourism’ program, and these are detailed below, with typical
indicators bulleted below each component 41:
37
Nature Conservancy, Ecolodge Guidelines, 6.
38
Toth, 17.
39
Toth, 18.
40
International Social and Environmental Accreditation and Labeling Alliance.
41
Toth, 34, 37.
24

25. 1. Minimize environmental damage
a. Reduction of solid waste
• Kilograms of waste to landfill or incinerator per sector specific activity
• Percentage of total waste that is reused and/or recycled
b. Minimization of contamination through waste discharge
• Kilograms of chemicals used per tourist specific activity (guest-night, tourists)
• Percentage of biodegradable chemicals used to total chemicals
• Solid Waste Disposal
c. Energy Conservation
• Total energy consumed per tourist specific activity (guest-night, tourists, etc)
• % of total energy from renewable sources
• CO 2 footprint
d. Water Conservation
• Total volume of potable water consumed per tourist specific activity
• Sewage is treated effectively
2. Minimize socio-cultural damage
a. Codes of behavior
• Appropriate Code of Behavior is integrated into operation
b. Contribute to community development
• Percentage of annual gross income contributed to local community
• New business and/or staff promoted
c. Stakeholder consultation
• Consultation and dialog with community or other local stakeholders
3. Maximize economic benefits for local communities
a. Local employment
• Percentage of staff locally hired
• Percentage of wages paid to local staff
b. Local purchase of services or goods
• Percentage of purchases of services and goods from local or regional providers
4. Operational management and quality
a. Integration of sustainability into operation
• Company sustainability policy
• Management system for key sustainability issues
• Customer service staff uses sustainable practices
b. Maximize customer satisfaction - Average customer satisfaction rating
25

26. CONSTRUCTION AND MATERIALS
Technical skill and construction skill is typically absent in villages, and finding urban people with
willingness to work in a remote area for an extended time can be challenging. Furthermore, maintaining
systems with high technical requirements can add to operating costs in the long term and will likely
result in occasional disruptions to service. These constraints should be considered early in the planning
process. From the author’s experience on many remote projects in Africa, many local people hired for
major construction projects will be unprepared for the sustained effort required for completion, and this
should be included in budgeting/scheduling through planned raises, work hiatus, and team rotation/
replacement. Training locals, who will have a stake in the project’s success, in advanced skills such as
PV system operation could be a significant long term cost saving, if it is successful and the individuals
remain engaged in the project.
Fundamentally, for most construction projects or facility operations, one simple equation can be used to
evaluate many decisions:
1 liter diesel fuel = 1 villager daily wage
From this perspective, many facets of construction and mechanical systems have a direct impact on
local employment. Examples include use of power tools versus human labor for sawing and digging,
powered compressed earth block equipment versus manual presses, treadle/Afridev pumps vs. electric
pumps, delivery of produce by bicycle vs. truck, and use of manual labor for road building vs. heavy
equipment. Of course, this approach comes at some detriment to time, capacity, and quality. This is
especially true in the mixing of mortar and concrete, where far superior results are to be found using a
powered mixer, particularly for pours of over 3m3, or when washing of the sand or aggregate is
necessary before making the concrete batch (as this can be quickly performed with a tilting powered
mixer.)
Material transport
Transportation can be another major cost with remote sites; costs of materials can easily double or
triple with truck delivery. Importation is also expensive, in that shipping costs from Europe/North
America/China as well as import duties can similarly increase costs. If possible materials should be
found as close to the construction site as possible and an affordable delivery method established; this
may include purchase of a delivery vehicle for the duration of the project.
26

27. Photo 5 Typical transportation scenario for remote Photo 6 Old South African military vehicle typical of lodge
destinations, Nairobi. construction.
The type of vehicle needed for the project should be analyzed carefully. A larger capacity truck (>5-ton)
will reduce transportation unit costs, but it can also have a greater impact on the road access to the site,
and trucks with long wheel bases may have difficulty maneuvering in a site that is rocky or forested, due
to both turning radius and the overhanging bumpers front and rear and the very low vehicle chassis. In
many cases the purchase of a project vehicle is assumed, while a careful financial analysis might
suggest otherwise.
Construction impact
Labor and power equipment again are a tradeoff on a construction site. Heavy equipment will produce a
much larger physical and auditory impact on the area, whereas people on site will have a larger impact
on local water quality and may also produce a significant physical impact. In the case that heavy
equipment is to be used, such as a Caterpillar, front end loader, tractor, or grader, work should be
organized such that all excavation or earth moving requirements can be performed in one stage. This
will also reduce cost, though it will require detailed site plans at an early stage of the construction
process; though this is of course desirable, it is not always a given on such projects.
If local labor is used and the workers will reside at the site, several dimensions must be considered:
accommodation, water supply, food supply, waste removal, and short and long term physical impact.
Additionally, transportation and medical services must be provided. In the best case scenario, future
staff housing or mechanical/storage facilities can be erected first, along with a water supply and storage
structure (this will also facilitate construction), and large numbers of workers can thus be housed on site,
preferably in an area that will not be visible to guests during the multiple rainy seasons that may be
required to rehabilitate the landscape.
Season and storm water control
A Storm Water Pollution and Prevention Plan42 (SWPPP) is the best means by which to minimize
disturbance to the site through erosion and sedimentation. Fundamental to this is the minimization of
42
Developing Your Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan: A Guide for Construction Sites, EPA
27

28. disturbed area, followed by sequential construction planned around the rainy season, and establishment
of erosion control measures, including silt fencing, check dams, wattles, and diversion of stormwater
around the site. For more information on this approach see the Appendix, and for a thorough
description of erosion and sediment control measures, visit the EPA website.
Boundaries can be defined, preferably with some foreign device such as barrier tape, to limit footpath
establishment both during and after working hours. Use of water from any surface source, such as a
river, stream, or lake should be strictly defined and monitored to reduce impact on this source.
Alternatively, staff can be accommodated off site, or even in their home villages, but this will increase
transportation costs immensely, as well as impact social factors detrimental to the work environment,
such as alcohol consumption, tardiness and absenteeism, or employment duration.
Tools
Tools necessary for a remote project with technical systems can be divided into three types:
technical/engineering tools; powered construction tools; and manually operated tools. Further, manually
operated tools can be subdivided into skilled tools and unskilled tools. A basic list of these is listed
below, while a more complete tool list is included in the appendix.
Technical/engineering tools:
• Laptop + CAD + engineering software • Builder’s level or theodolite
• Digital camera • Abney level
• GPS • 100m + 30m + 8m tapes
• PV and wind evaluation tools • Measuring wheel
Powered Construction tools:
• Concrete mixer + vibrator • Reciprocating + jig + circular saws
• Chainsaw • SDS-Plus hammer drill
• Welding machine + grinder • Generator
• Cordless tool set
Skilled manual tools:
• Hand saws • Treadle pump
• Compressed earth block machine • Wrenches +sockets + screwdrivers
Unskilled manual tools:
• Shovels • Metal digging bars
• Machetes • Hammer
• Digging hoes • Wheel barrows
• Metal buckets
Water and pumping
Ideally, the water supply system for the entire facility should be one of the first components completed,
as this will facilitate immediate habitation and construction at the site. However, this will also require
early detailed planning as to facility needs and site planning to determine the water source, storage, and
primary distribution system. In the case that a borehole is to be utilized, a central location or a location
near a hill is ideal to facilitate easy pumping to gravity distribution. With lake, river, or marine water
source, a sophisticated system design will be required to make the water suitable for drinking, which is
also desirable for construction purposes, especially concrete works.
28

29. Photo 7 Approtec 'Money Maker' treadle pump is a good Photo 8 Typical petrol powered water pump.
choice for construction works.
Temporary or permanent pumps are options for the construction phase. Temporary pumps include
firefighting pumps, petrol or electrically powered centrifugal pumps, or manually operated treadle pumps.
Permanent pumps, which would be installed in the completed water system for long term operation at
the facility, include submersible pumps and centrifugal pumps. For more information on permanent
installations see the mechanical systems section on water.
Generators
Several options exist for mobile power supply, and these options should be considered for construction
plus long term use at the facility:
• Diesel generator • Sound attenuated
• Petrol generator • 240v AC + 12v DC
• Generator/welder • Single phase
• Moveable/fixed • Three phase
Generally, a 4kVa generator is sufficient for most construction works (running concrete mixer, pumping
water, minor welding, and powering communications equipment), whereas a long term backup generator
for the facility may be of the order of 12-50kVa, or higher in some instances (please see Electricity
section for more discussion about generator sizing). Therefore, the generator selected for construction
should be specified for future construction and maintenance activities, but not necessarily for lodge
backup. In some cases, where wind or PV will provide most of the power for the facility, a smaller unit is
feasible, and in this case it should be designated as sound attenuated so that it can function under
normal circumstances with minimal intrusion on the guest experience.
29

30. Materials and Techniques
A limited number of materials are available at an affordable price in most African countries, and
hardware selection is also low. In particular fabricated steel, aluminum products, stainless steel
hardware, and Western style cladding systems are very expensive, if they are available at all. In place
of this, one must often use locally produced wood, welded round bar, threaded rod, and lower quality
nails and bolts. However, this situation is compatible with the principles advanced for ecolodge
construction. Advice on the use of local materials is the outlined below:
Fired Brick
Locally fired brick is one of the most common building materials in Africa today, used on construction in
small remote villages, city mansions, and even multi-story concrete framed buildings. Because massive
amounts of older growth wood must be used to fire the brick, this product (along with charcoal
production) is responsible for significant deforestation throughout the continent. Rwanda has instituted a
ban on locally fired brick without permit, but in most countries the practice is so widespread and
entrenched that no change in course seems possible. Some donor organizations such as DFID are
promoting school construction with compressed earth blocks (see below). Unfortunately, traditional
construction techniques such as adobe, rammed earth, and wattle and daub are perceived as inferior,
despite the fact that most locally fired bricks have very little advantage in compression strength or
durability.
Photo 9 Staff housing of locally fired brick in Majete Photo 10 Safari tent with brick bathroom, Majete Wildlife
Wildlife Refuge, Malawi. Reserve, Malawi.
In the case the bricks are necessary in construction, efforts should be made to minimize the amount of
wood necessary. This can be accomplished by replanting trees, using alternative fuels to fire the wood,
such as used oil, coal or charcoal dust, or waste agricultural materials such as tobacco stems and rice
husks, and reducing the total number of bricks necessary. Producing a more uniform brick will also
reduce the amount of mortar necessary for the wall construction.
Wood
Eucalyptus is the most commonly available wood in many locations, but pine and hardwood is also to be
found. Wood can typically be purchased as poles or as lumber in common American dimensions such
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31. as 2” x 6” and 2” x 8”. Most wood will not be ‘sustainably harvested,’ meaning that it is not replanted.
Furthermore, in many locations ‘kiln dried’ lumber is not available: The material is not dimensionally
stabile and significant splitting, warping, or twisting may occur during and after construction. To
eliminate some of these problems, some projects may import containers of industrially produced wood
from other countries (notably Brasil), but this of course increases transport costs and carbon footprint of
the material. For high end construction this may be the only alternative to use higher quality finished
wood surfaces. Ultimately, a program to replant in kind (or in greater number) nearby harvested trees is
the most sensible action to take, as long as these trees are maintained to maturity.
Stone
Local stone can be a huge asset to a remote project, especially if local masons are available to dress
the rock to useable dimensions and build walls. Typical stone types include basalt near volcanic areas,
laterite and granite in areas where murram soil is common, and limestone blocks quarried from marine
deposits along the Indian Ocean. Basalt rock is often very hard and can be difficult to produce an
rectilinear units, whereas laterite may be very low in strength and durability. Limestone blocks are often
of average strength but can be dressed easily.
Photo 11 High quality, angular basalt in central Ethiopia. Photo 12 Limestone block quarry, Manda Island Kenya.
Thatch
Thatch is the most common roofing material for the traditional safari lodge. Its procurement is very
expensive and time consuming due to the need for huge volumes to construct a high quality roof. The
most common thatch material in southern Africa is Hyperthelia dissoluta (called ‘Highveld’ or ‘yellow’
thatching grass in South Africa); Thamnochortus insignis is found on the coast, where it is considered
the highest quality material available, and it is even exported 43. Advantages of thatch include its local
availability, very low carbon footprint, insulating property, and natural aesthetic. Disadvantages include
the costs of roof framing, transportation, and labor, difficulty to put out if on fire, short lifespan (10-20
years), high maintenance, and the relative scarcity of skilled workers to install. Along the Indian Ocean,
the most common roof material is ‘makuti,’ which is woven coconut palm fronds, but it is not found very
43
Yates, pg. 13
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32. far inland and it is not a very durable material compared to traditional thatch, though its cost is much
lower.
Photo 13 Thatch roof, Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, Photo 14 Makuti thatch roof on Lamu Island, Kenya.
Malawi. Note the concrete cap for waterproofing.
Some tips for thatch roofing:
• Err on the side of ‘over design’ when detailing the roof framing: use maximum pole spacing of
700mm and a minimum pole diameter of 100mm.
• Use 41.5 kg/m2 for design dead load (at 300mm thickness) 44
• Minimize valleys in roof design, and keep chimneys or penetrations at the ridge, to eliminate
back flashing.
• Eave overhangs should be at least 650mm.
• Do not allow rain water to discharge on to thatch from a higher level.
• Use Kevlar cord recycled from automobile tires for tying thatch bundles to roof framing.
• Minimum roof pitch of 45°, and minimum of 35° over dormer windows
• Provide suitable ridge capping, such as reinforced concrete, to prevent water infiltration at this
critical location.
• Avoid tall trees that will shade the roof and possibly increase deterioration rate.
• Complete thatching before rainy season.
Alternatively, synthetic thatch materials are available that are lighter, more durable, fire resistant, and
may even be cheaper than real thatch, thus justifying their procurement in some situations. Technical
information on their performance and installation is available from manufacturers, but these materials
arguably do not adhere to ecolodge philosophy, and are not covered in this document.
Gravel
Two primary considerations must be made in selecting gravel for use as aggregate in concrete works:
strength and size. Strength can be determined empirically, by physically crushing pieces (i.e. with a
hammer) and inspecting the local geology (avoid sandstones, while igneous and metamorphic rock are
generally okay). Additional tests can be made by mixing concrete samples and crushing in a structural
44
Baden-Powell, pg. 104.
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33. laboratory, though this is a time consuming process unpalatable to most planners or builders in the early
stage of a construction process.
Photo 15 Typical gravel making method with hammers, Photo 16 Screening of sand and gravel is useful to
Malawi. achieve high quality concrete and mortar, northern
Ethiopia.
Aggregate size is also important. Because aggregate is often produced manually with hammers, larger
pieces are more common and cheaper. This size may be suitable for foundation works or floors (20mm
to 50mm), but smaller sizes should be prepared for columns and beams (<25mm). This can either be
performed manually as described, or machines can be used, such as the hand operated rock crusher
from New Dawn Engineering in Swaziland. Note that gravel purchased from a quarry can be ordered in
any desired dimension.
Sand
Sand for construction in Africa is generally of two types: river sand or quarry sand. Quarry sand is
better quality due to its rougher texture and absence of clay and silt particles, which severely lower
concrete strength. However, good quality river sand can be located, and it also can be sifted, screened,
and washed for use in concrete works. In some projects, this may be a very time consuming process,
but it must be performed to achieve adequate concrete strengths (i.e. > 20 MPa). Time spent finding a
good source of construction sand will result in much higher durability.
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34. Photo 17 High quality sand is rough and angular, clean of Photo 18 Exploitation of good river sand deposit for
organics, clay, and silt, and evenly distributed in size. cement block making, Bua River, Malawi.
Soil
Two main soil types are found in Africa: laterite (also called ‘murram’), or montmorrilonite ('black cotton
soil'), which is encountered in wetlands and near volcanic areas. Laterites can usually be found just
below the surface of vast open plains, grasslands and forest clearings, in regions with heavy rainfall.
They are highly weathered soils originating from granite bedrock, formed through break down of rock by
chemical decay in tropical conditions; signs of their original structure remain present in the soil. Lateritic
clay is generally red in color, and is composed of large quantities of iron oxide and aluminum. It is
generally a good soil for compressed earth block construction or for making bricks.
Photo 19 Better quality red laterite soil is often found Photo 20 Low quality black montmorrilonite soil not
deeper below the topsoil and above the rock layer, suitable for construction, northern Rwanda.
Rwanda.
Montmorrilonite is expansive clay which is not suitable for earth construction due to excessive
shrinkage and swelling characteristics from water exposure. These are found in wet tropical regions,
usually close to weathered volcanic rock such as basalt and in low lying swamp areas (due to its very
small particle size and electrical charge, it tends to stay in suspension longer than other clays and silts).
The name comes from its very dark color, ranging from black and deep grey to dark brown, and from the
fact that often cotton is grown on it, especially in India, due to the resiliency of cotton roots to the soil
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35. movement during expansion. The soil is extremely clayey with a high plasticity, swells enormously in wet
condition and shows equally severe shrinking upon drying. In the dry state the soil is extremely hard. In
some locations this is the preferred material for traditional earthen floors.
Topsoil, comprised of organic materials mixed with soil, should never be used for construction purposes.
Lime
Lime is used as a stabilizer in clayey soils, both in road engineering and production of rammed earth
walls and compressed earth blocks.
Quicklime is produced in a kiln by firing limestone (CaCO 3 , calcium carbonate) at around 1000°
according to the following reaction:
CaCO 3 + heat → CaO + CO 2
Quicklime can be hydrated (combined with water) to produce hydrated lime, which is commonly used in
construction works:
CaO + H 2 O → Ca(OH) 2
Photo 21 Lime blocks with lime mortar construction, Photo 22 Use of lime for compressed earth block
Lamu. stabilization, Rwanda.
Cement
Typically, cement is one of the biggest costs for remote construction projects. Whenever possible,
solutions should be found that can minimize cement use, but this can be detrimental to finish quality and
durability of the structure. Additionally, many traditional building techniques employ poor construction
methods and improper use of cement, and when these are controlled or eliminated, significant savings
can be realized. Example of this include concrete floor finishing with cement paste and no sand or
aggregate, overuse of water in the concrete mix, foundation concrete without reinforcement, or
construction of reinforced concrete with dirty/corroded reinforcement and insufficient concrete ‘clear
cover.’ In each case, a smaller cement ratio mixture applied properly will have much better long term
results. Before any construction project, the manager should consult a modern concrete text book,
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36. establish clear cement mixing rules and procedures, and install quality control procedures including
making a breaking test cylinders in a test lab.
Cement is created from limestone in a process similar to that of making lime, but it is heated to
approximately 1450°, and additional constituents such as clay, shale, sand, iron ore, bauxite, fly ash
and/or blast furnace slag, which may contain calcium oxide, silicon oxide, aluminum oxide, ferric oxide,
and magnesium oxide. Gypsum or anhydrite (calcium sulfate) is added to this “clinker”, and the mixture
is finely ground to a powder. A partial reaction of this very complex and not completely understood
process is outlined here:
CaO + Ca 2 SiO 4 + heat → Ca 3 O·SiO 4
Compressed Earth Blocks (CEB’s)
Compressed Earth Blocks are compressed with hand-operated mechanical presses or motorized
hydraulic machines. They may be stabilized our unstabilized (see below), and they are promoted
throughout Africa as a modern application of an ancient building technique. Notable CEB machine
manufacturers include Hydraform in South Africa, Makiga Engineering in Nairobi, New Dawn
Engineering in Swaziland, and the Auroville Earth Institute in India.
Photo 23 High production Making compressed earth Photo 24 Making compressed earth blocks, Bua River,
block manufacture from laterite soil Malawi. Malawi.
The following procedure can be followed to produce high quality CEB’s:
1. Excavate soil below the topsoil layer. Often, deeper soil is harder to excavate, but it will produce a
strong block.
2. Arrange for a laboratory tests on soil to determine properties: gradation and optimum water
content. This can be used to compare soils and determine the amount of cement or lime content.
3. Sieve soil to remove all particles >5mm. Crush larger particles and resieve or discard. Add silt or
sand if necessary.
4. Add stabilizer and water
• Add lime to soil, thoroughly mix, and allow it to sit for one day. This may allow the lime to break
apart clay lumps and create a better mix.
36

37. • Add cement to soil and immediately hydrate with water and produce blocks. All cement mixtures
should be used within 1 hour.
5. The soil block press should be operated as described in the instruction manual; different machines
require different soil amounts, operational techniques, and maintenance requirements.
6. Arrange blocks in rows and place under a plastic tarp.
7. Sprinkle water on blocks in morning and evening for seven days, keeping covered. The process is
called curing. The longer the blocks are cured, the higher the final strength of the wall will be.
8. After the first seven days, stack blocks up to five rows high and allow further curing for at least one
month for lime bricks and seven days for cement bricks. Keep them covered with the plastic tarp
when not in use to maintain even moisture content and increase the curing temperature.
Compression – hydraulic vs. manual
There are many different types of block presses. Some are manually operated on some are powered
with electricity, petrol, or diesel. Manual presses can be operated by semi-skilled workers, whereas
powered machines need more skilled operators and are more expensive to run. Bricks may be square
and flat faced, or they may interlock. Interlocking blocks have the advantage of requiring less (or no)
mortar between the blocks. Square blocks are more versatile for making curves or intersection walls, as
are conventional bricks. Makiga-type machines are the most common manual presses in Malawi, and
Hydraform is the most common powered machine.
Photo 25 Hydraform diesel powered hydraulic block Photo 26 Makiga human powered mechanical block press
press from South Africa. from Kenya.
Interlocking vs. flat blocks
Traditional masonry is accomplished with square units, such as bricks, adobe blocks, and chiseled
stone. Because Compressed Earth Blocks are molded, they can be shaped to interlock. This has the
advantage of minimizing or eliminating the need for mortar, but in practice, manually operated machines
do not produce blocks of sufficient uniformity to allow a complete elimination of mortar. Typically
hydraulic machines such as Hydraform will enable a mortarless wall section with little difficulty in laying
consistent height courses.
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