Leonardo DiCaprio plans to turn his private island into an ecoresort
Digital Reporter
Monday, April 6, 2015, 1:52 PM - Leonardo DiCaprio is a very vocal environmentalist, and it seems he's putting his money where his mouth is.
The blockbuster actor spent part of his no-doubt considerable fortune to buy Blackadore Caye, a small island off the Belize coast in Central America, soon after visiting the country for the first time a decade ago.
It sounds idyllic, but the island is actually in lousy shape, and DiCaprio plans to actually restore its natural beauty and turn it into an eco-resort.
"My goal was always the fact that I wanted to create something not just environmental, but restorative -- a showcase for what is possible," he told the New York Times.
The 42-hectare island has no permanent population, but it's a regular stopover for area fishermen who, DiCaprio says, cut down the trees for fires to smoke their catches, and littered the place with empty conch shells.
Most of the rest of the trees were removed for landscaping on the mainland, leaving the island deforested, eroded and overfished. If DiCaprio's plan works, the island will be restored to a more pristine state, which visitors can enjoy in a tightly controlled resort environment to minimize their impact on the environment.
As for the nightly rate, it's likely to be pricey, and if you want to outright buy a villa on the island, you'll have to fork out up to $15 million for the privilege.
SOURCE: New York Times
BONUS VIDEO: Man takes (dangerous) walk across frozen Toronto harbour:
