Unless you're reading this online, you're partly responsible for the 41,000 or so trees that are felled across the world every day So I hope you're going to recycle this paper. Where did I get this clever-clogs figure? From the literature at Tiamo, an "earth-friendly" resort made up of a row of chic but simple wooden cottages scattered along a quiet strand of white powder on Andros island in the Bahamas. The perfect antidote to the Caribbean's more familiarly hedonistic pi?olada-and-party resorts, this is barefoot luxury at its most polished - as well as being kind to the environment Andros is one of the less well-known Bahamian islands. With an area of 2,300 square miles and home to only 8,000 people, it is one of the least explored places in the western hemisphere. That the island, the largest in the country, is so undeveloped is down to its geography.

Andros is, in fact, not one island but a tightly clustered archipelago. With its rocky shores and a web of creeks, it has never offered the kind of obvious harbour found on other Bahamian islands so, apart from the odd fishing lodge and luxury retreat, development has largely passed it by. However, what has made the island unsuitable for urban evolution makes it perfect for eco-tourism.Not only are there vast swathes of pristine tropical forest and mangroves to hike through, but those creeks and rocky shores are home to deep blue holes you can snorkel over and one of the largest barrier reefs in the world. On South Andros, where Tiamo is located, the island even boasts its own indigenous species, a monster-like giant iguana that can be heard snapping over branches and snuffling though crisp leaves as it heaves its 3ft-long form along in the hunt for food. Presumably one of the reasons the iguanas have survived here is that Tiamo is remote even by Andros' standards. Set three, road-less miles from the nearest village (guests are transported by boat) and surrounded by palm trees, banana plants, orchids, herons, tiny tree frogs and some vicious mosquitoes, Tiamo sticks firmly to an earth-friendly philosophy. The resort relies on a vast solar power system for its electricity and has solar-heated rainwater showers (which work better than most British plumbing), a well for drinking water and surprisingly normal-looking compost toilets.The run-off from showers and sinks is filtered and used to water the fruit and vegetables in the kitchen garden. And, keeping the community in mind as well as the land, the resort also supports local businesses, buying its fish from South Andros fishermen and encouraging development projects.Not surprisingly, there are no TVs, only a single telephone and extremely limited e-mail access at Tiamo.

(Guest instructions bark that "We are trying to keep you away from these things! If you must we can send a fax. And in only the most dire of situations - it better be good - we will send an e-mail for you.")So far, so worthy. But, while Tiamo may serve as the ultimate blueprint for responsible, modern tourism, you don't have to belong to the hair-shirt school of eco-warriors to stay here (fellow guests, during my visit, were more likely to be found in Helmut Lang shirts and designer shorts) Despite the full-on approach, it's an idyllic retreat. Tiamo's secluded wooden cottages wouldn't look out of place on the pages of Cond?ast Traveller, with their massive beds, hand-painted "do not disturb" signs, brightly tiled mirrors and showers leaning towards safari-chic with their painted, corrugated-iron walls. In a clever twist on recycling, the wood left over from constructing the cottages went into building the resort's funky outdoor furniture.The main features of all the cottages, though, are their open porches. With fans rather than air-conditioning, the open sides are designed to help keep temperatures down in the steamy Bahamian sunshine It seems to work.

But, secured only with anti-bug netting, their real attraction is that they offer panoramic views of the forest and beach. It is the perfect place to do some surreptitious bird-watching, and within half an hour of checking in, a haughty-looking yellow-crested night heron had come and perched on a branch four feet from our cottage. Apparently it was after a Cuban tree-frog for dinner.For guests, too, food is a big part of the experience. "Chef Eric" served up delicious seared tuna with fresh salsa, spicy grilled chicken salad and perfectly pink lamb with cassava mash and roast pumpkin over the few days we were there The kitchen doesn't escape Tiamo's ethical policy, either. Though an attempt is made to give menus a local flavour, some Bahamian specialities such as conch, lobster and grouper are purposefully avoided because of the threat to stocks from over-fishing.If I had to pick a negative, it would be that most of the other guests were of the relentlessly all-American kind, with a bossy cheeriness that began to grate after the first day. In fact, you had to wonder whether Chef Eric was chemically enhancing the cassava mash.