BY DORIE MORALES

Just south of Los Angeles and minutes from the Pacific Coast Highway sits The Ranch at Laguna Beach. A former 150-year-old homestead nestled among the verdant cliffs of Aliso Canyon, the resort is renowned for both its luxury and sustainability.

“We sit on 87 acres surrounded by untouched wilderness and steep canyon walls. When you’re the steward of a place like this, sustainability isn’t a campaign, it’s a responsibility that comes with the land we operate on,” says Kurt Bjorkman, COO of The Ranch.

The resort stands behind this philosophy. It is a founding member of Beyond Green, a global portfolio of luxury hotels, resorts, and lodges recognized for their sustainability standards. More than just a label, Beyond Green is the embodiment of sustainability put into practice. Member properties are vetted on globally recognized sustainability standards aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals — these focus on basic needs, social rights, and environmental protections — as well as three development pillars: nature, culture, and community.

SUSTAINABILITY IN ACTION

“Bottles to Bunkers” is a core sustainability initiative. An on-site glass crusher recycles glass waste, transforming it into sand that’s used on the resort’s GEO Certified — officially accredited by the GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf — nine-hole golf course.

Water conservation is another important goal. One hundred percent of the property’s irrigation — including the golf course — uses reclaimed water. This saves approximately 21 million to 22 million gallons of potable water each year.

Sustainable small touches are found throughout the property. Biodegradable bamboo room keys have replaced plastic keys. Refillable glass and aluminum water bottles are provided for guest use. Eco-friendly straws are available on request. And plastic straws, plastic laundry bags, and plastic dry-cleaning covers are forbidden. Recently, the resort partnered with Fox Fold to introduce sustainable, reusable bamboo tissue boxes in guestrooms. These initiatives reduce landfill waste and help keep plastics and cardboard from entering the waste stream.

Because the resort is located in a semi-urban area, light pollution is a concern. As such, exterior lighting is limited. Every light fixture on the property is LED, and outdoor lighting is low lux — that is, engineered for minimal brightness. This allows for a clearer view of the night sky, while minimizing any impact on night creatures.

These are just a few of the many environmentally friendly practices — from using only fair trade and locally produced coffee and tea to removing trash and debris from Aliso Creek and protecting pollinator habitats — that are part of everyday life at The Ranch.

GREEN DINING

A stay at The Ranch doesn’t just feel good. It also tastes good. Signature restaurant Harvest is a culinary celebration of local farming. Executive Chef Kyle St. John creates seasonal California cuisine using ingredients from the resort’s on-property biodynamic garden. “Farmer Leo” Goldsmith operates the half-acre garden, growing a variety of fruits, vegetables, microgreens, and herbs.

“In August, we are in full swing with our summer ingredients. Right now, we’re harvesting sweet summer corn that’s being used in one of our favorite dishes, Sweet Corn Agnolotti, and we’re also using the eggs from the farm to hand-make our pasta dough. We’re highlighting everything summer has to offer here in Southern California: lots of fresh heirloom variety tomatoes, eggplants, summer squashes, and zucchinis, and tons of different pepper varieties. Some other summer dishes on the menu include our Smoked Baba Ghanoush with miso-tahini, chile roasted pine nuts, and warm naan. We use eggplants from the farm to make the baba ghanoush,” St. John explains. “We tend to go all in on our seasonal ingredients, sourcing from our farm and local farms. We want to highlight the ingredients in different preparations and use them all throughout the menu, so no matter what time of day it is, our guests can experience farm-fresh ingredients grown right here on site.”

Growing its own produce allows the resort to reduce transportation-based produce delivery. It also composts all wet food waste, except for proteins and paper. The process eliminates 20,000 pounds of food waste from landfills and reduces methane gas emissions. The nutrient-rich end material is then returned to the garden.

“At Harvest, the philosophy is simple: use what we have, limit what we buy from far away, and limit our waste. We compost everything that we can, and it goes right back to the farm soil,” Bjorkman says.

Guests can also dine on sustainably sourced local line-caught fish, a benefit of being located about a 10-minute walk from the Pacific Ocean. The Ranch was named California’s first Ocean Friendly Hotel by the Surfrider Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to the protection of the world’s oceans and beaches. Harvest was named the first Ocean Friendly Restaurant in Laguna Beach. And in June, the Ranch was honored with a Poppy Award for Best Sustainability or Resilience by Visit California.

“From reclaiming 21 million gallons of water a year to crushing every bottle into sand for our golf bunkers, we’ve made sustainability measurable, not aspirational,” Bjorkman says. “Great hospitality and serious environmental commitment aren’t a trade-off. You can and should have both.”

For more information, see www.theranchlb.com.

Explore more sustainable destinations and inspiring getaways in our Travel section.