A green campsite in the Dordogne: a voluntary environmental approach
Our best practices as new campsite owners
Waste management at the 4-star Pech Charmant campsite
Reducing waste production and encouraging sorting, recycling and reuse are our priorities
Selective sorting encouraged
At the entrance to the campsite, we have set up a number of containers (cardboard/plastic/paper; glass; household waste) which are well signposted and visible.
We make our staff and guests aware of the importance of sorting: a flyer on sorting is distributed at each arrival in several languages.
The virtuous cycle of green waste
We give all our dead leaves (and we have a lot of them on our 12 hectares!) to a local organic permaculture market gardener a few miles away in Manaury.
We accumulate other green waste in a dedicated non-campable area of our forest for natural composting.
Support for biodiversity: to support the integration of the campsite into the natural site, we carry out a policy of clearing brushwood and pruning to preserve the habitat of birds, our piles of cut wood are piled up in the wooded parts of the campsite and serve as ecological niches for biodiversity
Soil: animal manure is used as fertiliser for the plantations, and we limit the use of chemicals as much as possible
Organic waste: private and restaurant organic waste is used to feed our animals (rabbits, donkeys, goats) and in 2022 we installed two composters at the main entrances to the campsite.
Most of our cleaning and household products are eco-labelled: we do not use any phytosanitary products and buy as many organic cleaning products as possible.
We favour bulk drinks and use reusable Ecocup-type cups at our events (concerts, etc.).
We recycle our ink cartridges and dematerialize as much as possible the administrative part (only one invoice at the end of the stay, digital communication at the most).
Energy managementat our family campsite in Les Eyzies
Since our arrival, we have replaced all light bulbs and neon lights with energy saving ones and all pathway lighting in the campsite is now solar powered.
We use two electric vehicles, one of which was recently purchased, and none of our accommodation is equipped with air conditioning.
Finally, we have plans to install a second charging point for electric vehicles (in 2024).
We have put animals (2 ponies and 4 donkeys) out to pasture on many of the campsites in the pre-season to avoid a maximum of thermal mowing.
We have a project within 3 years to replace the fleet of machines for the maintenance of green spaces (all thermal today), by electric tools.
Water managementat the Pech Charmant campsite
All the showers in the accommodation are equipped with water-saving showerheads and the communal toilets with push buttons set to reduce the flow of water.
Our paths are not tarmacked, allowing for minimal soil sealing and natural temperature regulation, aided by careful forest management.
We have chosen plants for our flowerbeds that do not need water (olive trees, rosemary, heather, palm trees, lavender, yuccas, etc.).
We have installed gutters and eaves troughs and are going to install two 1,000-litre tanks to collect rainwater for watering: the ponies’ watering is now connected to this network and is almost autonomous.
For the 2023 season, we have invested in a system for treating the water against limescale by filtration, which will reduce wear and tear and the premature replacement of equipment…
In addition, the construction of our new sanitary block in 2022 has made it possible to considerably reduce water consumption.
We opt for short circuits
In our purchases, we favour local suppliers as much as possible (local market gardener in sustainable agriculture, village baker, local pork supply…).
You will no longer come to us by chance…