What is Garda Green

Garda Green is Lake Garda’s ecological protocol that sprang from the commitment of the small and medium enterprises that see Lake Garda as a resource to be protected and who wish to make their contribution to the strategies designed by the institutional bodies to protect the environment. Thanks to the backing of prestigious companies on the Italian scene that have developed its themes and identified practical solutions, the Garda Green protocol was made to guarantee companies an effective and common guideline that avoids them useless and heavy investments.



Thematic Areas

The thematic areas that make up the Garda Green Ecological Protocol owned by the Garda Green Club corporate network are:
• Communication
• Garbage and separate collection
• Sustainable mobility
• Energy production and procurement
• Cleaning and water recovery
• Energy efficiency

 

 



Territories

The vast area of action of the Garda Green protocol, to date, has been identified in the Garda territories of the Veneto, Lombardy and Trentino A. A. regions.

For Veneto with the territories coinciding with the thematic tourism system (STT) Lake Garda, i.e. in the municipalities of: Affi, Bardolino, Brentino Belluno, Brenzone sul Garda, Caprino Veronese, Castelnuovo del Garda, Cavaion Veronese, Costermano, Ferrara di Monte Baldo, Garda, Lazise, Malcesine Pastrengo, Peschiera del Garda, Rivoli Veronese, San Zeno di Montagna, Torri del Benaco, Valeggio sul Mincio.


For Lombardy with the municipalities belonging to the Consorzio Lago di Garda Lombardia: Desenzano, Gardone Riviera, Gargnano, Limone, Lonato, Manerba, Magasa, Moniga, Padenghe, Polpenazze, Pozzolengo, Puegnago, Salò, San Felice, Sirmione, Soiano, Tignale, Toscolano Maderno Tremosine and Valvestino;


For Trentino Alto Adige with the municipalities of the Trentino Riviera: Riva del Garda, Torbole sul Garda and Nago, Arco, Tenno, Dro and Drena.

 

 



The corporate network is expanding to the Trentino-Alto Adige and Brescia shores of Lake Garda. In fact, its mission is to increase the number of Garda Green companies so that the collective commitment can significantly impact the protection of Lake Garda’s ecosystem.

Who can join 
Companies and businesses, either in individual or associated form with a vocation for tourist hospitality, restaurant service, tourism services in general, and production of individual food and wine products, including cultural enterprises that, in serving their customers, place particular emphasis on limiting their environmental impact on Lake Garda may adhere to the Garda Green Protocol.

This includes these businesses:

• Hotel facilities in general
• Restaurants in general
• Production companies of typical local products
• Public subjects
• Public or private bodies
• Public or private associations


Specifically, Garda Green Club is geared toward companies that:
• Place particular emphasis on the environmental impact of their business
• Would like to cater specifically to the eco-tourist or green tourist
• Are willing to undertake actions that can progressively reduce their environmental impact.



Criteria

The Garda Green ecological protocol was defined after a major collection and processing of data. The criteria that contradistinguish it are:

• General criteria
• Required criteria
• Optional criteria


General Criteria

By general criteria we mean all those elements that are inherent to a business compliant with regulations and include:
1. Legal requirements for the service provided
2. Legal requirements for the building permits
3. Requirements for system regularity
4. Legal requirements for safety and prevention
5. Legal requirements for any landscape integrations 
6. APE – energy performance certificate
7. Water energy gas samples monitoring system 
8. Separate garbage collection


Required Criteria
By required criteria we mean all those elements required by specific current laws in the area of energy savings and efficiency whose parameters have been re-elaborated taking into account the extremely particular climate of Lake Garda and surrounding areas. The Garda Green ecological protocol therefore includes technical solutions that cost much less for the same amount of pollution produced compared to those needed to follow the guidelines of national and European regulations that instead take into account much less localized geoclimates and 365 days rather than the 200-210 days of operation of the tourism activities on Lake Garda. The required criteria include macro areas of intervention: electricity, thermal energy, building envelope, temperature regulation, lighting, air-conditioning, system maintenance, garbage, sustainable mobility, communication, soaps and detergents, and restaurant service.

 

Optional Criteria
By optional criteria we mean a series of elements that are given a score that it is up to the hotel keeper to work on until totaling at least 37 points out of 174 possible. This rationale springs from the fact that the holder knows his facility and the dynamics of management, his own, of his employees, and his clientele. The objective is still to intervene extensively, avoiding useless investments. Having earned 37 optional points, SMEs can display the Garda Green Hospitality / Camping / Restaurant / Farm logo on their company brochures and company website, but will not be considered members of the Garda Green Club network, which instead requires earning 74 points out of 174. The 37 optional points are enough to communicate a concrete ecological commitment to one’s own clientele, but not enough to intercept new strongly ecologically oriented client segments around which instead the Garda Green Club communication, marketing, and tourism offering plan is centered.