Leonardo DiCapri Developing Eco-Resort On His Own Private Island
Leonardo Dicaprio is planning on developing an eco-resort on his own private island in Belize. The Wolf of Wall Street actor is hoping to effectively save the island which has suffered from overfishing, deforestation and an eroding coastline.
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The 40-year-old actor owns Blackadore Caye, a 104-acre unpopulated island off the coast of Belize. DiCaprio bought the island a decade ago after he fell in love with Belize whilst on a scuba diving holiday. He described the country as being "like heaven on earth."
He is hoping, along with his business partner Paul Scialla, to transform the island into "Blackadore Caye, a Restorative Island". The resort will include infinity pools and villas built out into the sea, what one would usually expect from a luxury resort, but will also include some key features which will ensure the island becomes environmentally sound and sustainable again.
Some of these features include nurseries which will grow marine grasses to support manatees, replanting the island's native mangrove trees and the installation of artificial reefs and fish shelters underneath the villas.
Although this is a business venture for DiCaprio - MTV suggests the resort won't be cheap - his main aim in creating the eco-resort is to restore the island for environment reasons. DiCaprio is passionate about environmental causes and frequently donates large sums to environmental and animal charities.
"The main focus is to do something that will change the world," DiCaprio said in an interview with the NY Times. "I couldn't have gone to Belize and built on an island and done something like this, if it weren't for the idea that it could be groundbreaking in the environmental movement."
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