Conservationist David Bellamy has paid a special tribute to the recycling policies of a Lakeland holiday park where even raindrops and the energy used to wash socks goes unwasted.
Professor Bellamy made his comments this month when he announced Skelwith Fold Caravan Park in Ambleside as the winner of his prestigious Conservation Award at its top gold level.
The park, he said, was already justly celebrated for its work to protect wildlife, including the successful reintroduction of red squirrels which recently won praise from the Prince of Wales.
But behind the scenes, said David Bellamy, Skelwith Fold had created "an incredible green blueprint" for businesses wishing to lessen their impact on the environment.
The park's Henry Wild, he said, had shown both flair and enterprise in harnessing new technology to minimise the park's carbon footprint across a raft of its operations.
Singled out for special mention was the park's air-source heat pump which provides central heating by extracting warmth from the park's laundry and recycling it to other buildings used by guests.
The pump also takes heat from the outside atmosphere, and is able to create warmth from air temperatures as low as minus 17 degrees centigrade.
The system, said Henry, has drastically reduced Skelwith Fold's reliance on conventional carbon-producing energy for keeping its shower and washroom facilities up to temperature.
Water conservation is another important feature at Skelwith Fold which helped secure the park's top ranking in the 2010 David Bellamy Conservation Awards.
Its 300 holiday homes have all been fitted with water-saving devices, and a special rainwater harvester on the park supplies a washing facility for bikes, boots and even dogs.
Skelwith Fold has also improved on the local authority's recycling system by investing in its own recycling stations; these have drastically reduced the number of visits made by council refuse trucks.
Everywhere on the park, said David Bellamy, there was evidence of Skelwith Fold's determination to wipe-out wastage in the interests of the natural world.
The park even has its own timber recycling workshop where dead trees and pruned branches are converted into bird boxes, seating, fencing and building materials.
Current restoration work on Skelwith Fold's historic tarn also has a recycling element as the nutrient-rich silt being dredged will be used as a planting medium in place of commercial compost.
"What fantastic imagination this park is showing in everything it does!" said David Bellamy.
"Every time I visit, there's something amazing going on. Skelwith gives the natural world the same five-star treatment which it aims to give guests - and I take my hat off to them," he added.
The park's gold award also acknowledges the achievements made by Henry Wild and his park's conservation team to protect the indigenous flora and fauna of Skelwith's 130-acre grounds.
In autumn last year, Prince Charles wrote to Henry Wild congratulating the park on its success in establishing red squirrel colonies following a two-year battle against the greys.
The Prince of Wales also gave details of the park's achievements to the Red Squirrel Survival Trust, of which he is the patron, so that Skelwith's success strategy could be copied elsewhere.
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