Conservation Accolades for Medina Palms, East Africa’s Latest Eco-housing Development
The developers of Medina Palms, an eco-friendly residential development, have determined to set eco-standards in Africa and are donating a percentage of its income to the international wildlife charity, Born Free Foundation, to help preserve marine life.
Medina Palms also supports a billfish tagging initiative to monitor fish populations in the Indian Ocean by The Billfish Foundation, a non profit dedicated to conserving and enhancing billfish populations around the world.
The Foundation claims that over 90% of marlin mortality is the result of bycatch in commercial fisheries outside the US yet tremendous pressure continues to be placed on oceans from fishing fleets trying to meet the demands of a hungry world.
Set on seven acres of palms with private access to the beaches of the Watamu National Marine Park in Kenya, Medina Palms has adopted stringent environmental conservation principles.
Each property has been designed with a focus on alternative energy systems incorporating both wind and solar power. Solar power is used for hot water and the wind generator for pumping pool water and providing community lighting. Bio digesters minimise water consumption effectively providing ‘free’ water for laundry, pools and irrigation for the palm-fringed gardens.
Large storage tanks holding 120,000 liters of water have been designed to take advantage of the area’s heavy rainfall during mid-year.
Nigel Rowley, the man behind the vision of Medina Palms, says his design was inspired by the ancient spice traders who once made East African coast vibrant and it is built like a 12th century walled village with apartments, villas and penthouses.
The project has also been designed so that buildings are constructed around existing trees, while an on-site plant nursery is being developed to help propagate indigenous trees and plants to complement the village’s existing flora.
‘The Medina Palms Eco Village has been carefully designed with strong environmental principles, to allow us to live in harmony with nature. We are committed to responsible development. This involves significant initial capital investment in green technology, which will bring benefits for future generations,’ said Rowley.
Medina Palms will be donating a percentage of its income to Born Free Foundation in a joint initiative for local coastal conservation projects which will aim to protect local marine life through community involvement in habitat conservation, nest protection and environmental education activities.
The Medina Palms wins conservation accolades and the development could establish the eco-standard for future projects in Africa.
Image courtesy: Medina Palms
