Located amidst the hidden caves, jungles and beauties leading to the Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Boulder Garden Resort in Kalawana, Ratnapura is a dedicated bird watching sanctuary for avid lovers of nature. With only eight rooms and a small staff of fifteen, the hotel offers solitude, comfort and glimpse into the biodiversity Sri Lanka has to offer.
However, one of the disadvantages to being located as interior was undoubtedly the difficulty in convincing authorities to assist with waste collection. Hence having found out about biogas technology through sources and renewable energy enthusiasts, the management saw its potential and decided on constructing a 2.5 m3 biogas unit within the premises for kitchen waste management.
With two people designated for maintenance, the resort feeds between 5-10 kg of waste a day. But what’s most interesting about the resort’s unit is the non-traditional use of “energy”. Unlike most other stakeholders, Boulder Garden converts the gas produced from the biogas units to energy to power dim-bulbs situated in the premises. The dim lights are what are often needed for the resort given its reputation for being built within nature and attracting birds and other rare species.
Interestingly enough, Boulder Garden Resort was the first hotel built under the EU-funded SWITCH Asia initiative.
