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Xanadu Ecological Resort, Heibei China

HBO+EMTB are currently completing design and documentation of the Xanadu Ecological Resort and Hotel in Heibei Province, China.

This 2,000 hectare vacation destination includes: nine villages, family farming plots, a Wellness Centre, an Equestrian Centre, an Equestrian Rare Breeds Zoo, a Bird Watching Centre, and offers winter activities such as skiing and ice skating.

Located on a prominent hilltop beside a lake, the site has sweeping views of the surrounding Bashang Grasslands. It is a setting which required a rigorous design solution to ameliorate environmental factors such as strong winds and icy temperatures which make it a harsh landscape in which to spend time outdoors.

HBO + EMTB’s design reinforces the grassland setting by the re-introduction of the full complement of native grasses, forbs and herbland plants that exists in the Bashang. The result is a grassland animated by wind and seasonal changes in colour and texture with the seasons, that is also managed in a way that improves the quality of the native grassland.

In addition, local flora is grown, harvested and processed for cosmetic use within the resort’s spas, providing a sustainable industry and income for local farmers.

Additional design innovations include the introduction of water tanks for rainwater harvesting, biological wastewater treatment systems, swales and infiltration basins for stormwater retention and constructed wetlands which are lined with the locally occurring scoria rock providing a vastly increased surface area for the habitat of friendly bacteria.