In Slovenia already 40 environmentally and family-friendly mountain huts.

In Slovenia there are already forty environmentally and family-friendly mountain huts.



The Alpine Association of Slovenia (PZS) awarded new certificates for environmentally and family-friendly mountain hut at the 5th conference on mountaineering economy, with which a total of 40 Slovenian mountain huts can boast, providing environmentally friendly and energy-efficient management or open doors to children and their parents.



Slovenian mountaineering associations manage 178 mountain huts, shelters and bivouacs, of which 163 are serviced mountain huts, mostly open in the warmer months, many also in winter, hospitable stops for mountaineers of all generations, but also a burden on the environment. The goal of the Environmentally Friendly Mountain Hut project is to ensure environmentally friendly and energy-efficient hut management, while the Family-Friendly Mountain Hut project aims to attract children and their parents to the huts and ensure they feel good and return gladly. Both certificates were introduced years ago by the German Alpine Association, later joined by the alpine associations of Austria, South Tyrol and Slovenia.



To obtain the environmentally friendly mountain hut certificate, mountain huts demonstrate and commit to careful and holistic treatment of the sensitive mountain environment. Since most mountain huts in Slovenia are located in uninhabited, naturally sensitive areas, and also to encourage more visits due to higher and regulated environmental standards, PZS introduced a special certificate for huts in 2012 that have as little negative impact on the environment as possible with their overall operations. Such a certificate in the form of a document and a sign with the inscription Environmentally Friendly Mountain Hut is a clear message to visitors that the mountaineering association, indirectly through the caretaker or manager, strives to make the hut's impacts on the pristine nature around it and beyond as little disturbing as possible.



A year after the successful promotion of environmental relief in the mountain world, the Alpine Association began to pay more intensive attention to the question of how to attract children and parents to the huts. The certificate and sign with the inscription Family-Friendly Mountain Hut tell visitors that the staff strives to the greatest possible extent and continuously to make the stay at the hut a pleasant and unforgettable experience for the youngest mountaineers and their parents. To obtain the certificate, the hut staff's readiness to welcome families with the youngest guests with all attention and understanding for their specific needs is evaluated; the hut's location that allows relatively easy access for families; properly maintained mountain trails and parking lots at starting points; suitable surroundings of the hut for undisturbed activity of children and family; peculiarities in the hut's surroundings that are also interesting for children, and possibly their own program at the hut for families.



"At the alpine association, we are convinced that huts with one or both certificates gain in reputation and are therefore more visited, as we say, a good reputation spreads far. Mountaineers and other visitors to our huts are increasingly aware that a compromise must be found between comfort and care for the environment at mountain huts. Great comfort on one side (showers, heated rooms, large selection of dishes ...) on the other side causes more wastewater, higher energy consumption, more waste," reflects project leader Drago Dretnik from the PZS Economic Commission and adds: "If we want to continue the tradition of the Slovenian nation as a nation of mountaineers, we must also ensure safer introduction of our youngest to this beautiful mountain world of ours. Visiting mountains with children is a unique opportunity for adults to reshape their view of mountaineering, for children to take us to the mountains – not us them! Children have no high goals, peaks and rock walls are not challenges to be conquered for them. The mountain landscape is a backdrop for their imagination. Hiding among clumps of dwarf pine, running on flowering mountain meadows and forgetting time and space. Family-friendly mountain huts are an ideal starting point for experiencing the mountain world completely differently."



Deputy President of the Škofja Loka Mountaineering Association Jože Stanonik has been involved with the certificates from the very beginning and describes the association's efforts to obtain them as follows: "In 2013, we obtained the environmentally friendly mountain hut certificate for the Koča na Blegošu, as we met the conditions, fully equipping the hut with utilities – a sewage treatment plant and appropriate water supply, drainage and all effluents from food and drink preparation processes. In the building, we use energy-saving light bulbs, heat with firewood, use biodegradable cleaners and paper in the sanitary facilities, and arranged electricity from the grid, thus eliminating generators that previously caused noise and smell. To obtain the family-friendly mountain hut certificate a year later, we adapted the food offer to children, have a children's corner with picture books in the hut, children's playgrounds outside the hut where children can play even without parental supervision, and ensured safety in the rooms with bed rails." This year, renewal of the environmentally friendly mountain hut certificate awaits them and they will strive to extend it, and in the future they plan to further improve the hut's offer, which mountaineers reward with visits: "Blegoš has always been a hut very suitable for families, so we encourage that. Visits are gradually increasing, also because we have the hut open practically all year round, from May to October every day except Mondays if not a holiday, from November to April on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. On Blegoš, a decade ago we also introduced visiting with registration in a special book Blegoške korenine, such a title is obtained by mountaineers with 15 ascents and in which we record around twelve thousand entries annually."



The environmentally friendly mountain hut certificate with a validity of four years was received at the 5th mountaineering economy conference at the end of January at the Natour Alpe-Adria fair in Ljubljana by Frischaufov dom na Okrešlju, Koča na Loki pod Raduho, Koča v Grohotu pod Raduho, Planinska koča na Ermanovcu and Tončkov dom na Lisci. With the family-friendly mountain hut certificate for a period of four years, 16 mountain huts can newly boast: Dom na Smrekovcu, Dom planincev v Logarski dolini, Erjavčeva koča na Vršiču, Frischaufov dom na Okrešlju, Kocbekov dom na Korošici, Koča na Kopitniku, Koča na Loki pod Raduho, Koča na Naravskih ledinah, Mihelčičev dom na Govejku, Planinska koča na Ermanovcu, Planinski dom na Boču, Planinski dom na Brnici, Planinski dom na Kalu, Planinsko učno središče Bavšica, Tončkov dom na Lisci and Zavetišče na Planini.



"We joined the projects later. For child safety, we installed side rails on bunks, provided high chairs for eating, toys, books, coloring books so that children feel good. We already had a sewage treatment plant, since we don't have electricity from the valley, we obtain it with solar panels and as much as additionally needed with a generator that is not disturbing for mountaineers and the environment. We'll see what the certificates will bring us, but in any case we strive for improvements and are happy if mountaineers notice our effort," emphasizes Rajko Nadlučnik, president of the Planinsko društvo Luče, which obtained both certificates this year for Koča na Loki pod Raduho.