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How a British travel vlogger’s video led to the govt action against the Luxus Resort in Hunza

How a British travel vlogger’s video led to the govt action against the Luxus Resort in Hunza

The GB authorities sealed part of the property after George Buckley alleged that the resort was discharging untreated sewage into the lake, a claim Luxus denies.
18 Jun, 2025

A viral video has led to quite a problem for a resort in Hunza’s Attabad that has been accused of poor environmental protection practices. The Luxus Resort in Attabad has denied allegations of discharging untreated sewage into Attabad Lake following a viral video by foreign content creator George Buckley that prompted Gilgit-Baltistan authorities to seal part of the property and impose a fine.

In his video posted on Monday, Buckley claimed that locals had said the resort was dumping waste into the lake and showed the contrast between brown, murky water emerging from the boundaries of the resort and the blue water of the lake.

“The beauty of Lake Attabad is the colour of the turquoise water, and if this continues, you can literally see the brown going all the way around […] where we’re standing at the moment, the winds coming towards us, it smells bad,” he said in the video.

After the video was shared online and garnered one million views and over 37,000 likes, authorities in Gilgit-Baltistan sealed on Tuesday a section of the resort and fined its owner Rs1.5 million for non-compliance with environmental standards.

Gilgit-Baltistan Environmental Protection Agency (GBEPA) Director Khadim Hussain, the Hunza deputy commissioner and other officials inspected the hotel’s environment and sewage system.

The district administration shut down the entire extension of the resort. The sealed portion will remain closed until corrective measures are completed and formal clearance is granted by the EPA after a re-inspection.

The administration has also launched a review of all no-objection certificates issued to hotels and restaurants in the Attabad Lake area.

Dawn tried to contact the management of Luxus Resort Attabad, as well as their offices in Lahore, but no one was immediately available to comment on the issue.

In an Instagram video posted on Tuesday, Luxus denied the claim and said the “adjacent water streams coming from the mountains have natural sediments like mud, rocks and minerals”.

“When these turbid water streams mix with the blue lake water, this causes the muddy/cloudy appearance of water seen near Luxus Hunza.”

The resort said the phenomenon was known as “confluence”, where two separately flowing water bodies meet. “If one of the water bodies is high in turbidity, then this causes a muddy/cloudy water surface at the point of confluence. This phenomenon is more pronounced during the summer, which is why every summer, Luxus Hunza is falsely accused of dumping waste water into the lake.”

Following the action from authorities, Buckley posted another video and said, “The hotel I called out yesterday in Pakistan has been found to have been dumping sewage into the lake. This started from my post, and it has now reached a national level. [It’s] all over the news, the government has gotten involved, officials have arrived to the building. I’m in disbelief, to be honest.”

He maintained that Luxus denied all claims and did not provide any credible documents against his allegations. Buckley also thanked everyone from Pakistan who interacted with the post.

“I don’t like drama or getting involved in this stuff, but I felt it was important to address, and within 24 hours, there has been swift action.”

He also distanced himself from the scenario, citing safety reasons, and thanked everyone who raised their voices, adding that it was a shame that nothing was done sooner.

“I haven’t changed my opinion on Pakistan,” Buckley clarified. “I still think it’s a wonderful country, I’ve had lots of great experiences. I’m just documenting my travels as honestly as possible.”

In August of last year, the Hunza district administration and GBEPA took stringent measures against other hotels for similar violations.

At that time, Luxus Resort and Dolphin Floating Resort were sealed due to improper management of grey water from washrooms and kitchens.

Comments

Ali Hossain Jun 18, 2025 12:23pm
It is true.
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Yusuf Jun 18, 2025 02:00pm
If they aren't pumping sewage into the lake, where are they sending it? Where!
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Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmad Jun 18, 2025 02:00pm
This is what is called the real power of social media.
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Taj Ahmad Jun 18, 2025 03:17pm
It’s so sad and frustrating, we should keep our natural beauty as cleaned as possible and keep an eye, if anyone try to damage it or dumping anything around the area. Please keep entire Pakistan as beautiful as possible.
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Laila Jun 18, 2025 04:09pm
Rest assured, nothing will change. He authorities probably told them to hide dumping waste into the lake better along with the fine thats most likely not getting paid either. Trust on Pakistanis to ruin whatever good we have in this country. Whether its polluting the lakes with waste or defacing historical sites and rock formations with stupid graffiti or just polluting our ground and waters with garbage that's non bio degradable such as plastic, metal cans, chemicals etc.
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Laila Jun 18, 2025 04:41pm
Poor George, little does he know, the only reason the media picked this up is, because its gone viral, and the only reason, the "authorities" are involved, is, because its in the news, and they want to do damage control, not to the lake, but to the "image of Pakistan". Our inherently corrupt systemic governmental structures and politics dont leave room for actually doing justice or punishing crimes. They will just figure out what chemicals to add to the waste to camouflage the colour and odour. Rest assured this will continue. This nation, its authorities, businesses are unfortunately expert at lying and covering up. That's why we have exposés of cooking oil not fit for human consumption, milk diluted with chemicals, and other food related controversies (which we people just accept and live with) a few fake formalities of food inspection raids and fines for the news later, problems continue. Now we will destroy Hunza. If George wasn't a well known foreigner travel vlogger with a following this would not have gone viral at all. It's harder to gag, intimidate and force foreigners into compliance. Thank you George for revealing this. You are a good soul!
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iftikhar Jun 18, 2025 05:00pm
they were caught last year. Fined then EPA officials went on Hibernation till woke up by aforeighn Nationa
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El Cid Jun 18, 2025 11:48pm
If true then the responsible people be heavily fined and the establishment bulldozed and planted with local trees and vegetation.
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Irfan Jun 19, 2025 03:45am
It is true. They are dumping waste. They are earning millions, they can very easily install some kind of treatment system. They are just greedy and do not care about the environment.
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Laila Jun 19, 2025 03:50am
@Yusuf Great comment!! Follow the pipes!! Omg I would love somebody live streaming an investigation showing where the pipes lead to. That footage would be gold!
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Laila Jun 19, 2025 04:09am
Other countries (except Afghanistans Taliban's and Isis' destruction of historical monuments dating back centuries), protect, restore and preserve their historical sites and their cities and waters. Look at the Pyramids in Giza, the city of Petra in Jordan, the beaches of Bali, Seychelles, the Grand Canyon in the USA, the rock formations like Stonehenge in the UK, the Machu Picchu of Peru, the Taj Mahal of India, the great wall and temples in China, the wildlife in Kenya, Tanzania. Pakistan is truly the only country that's hellbent on destroying what we have been blessed with. We are even inviting and allowing rich Arab sheikhs to come and hunt the very endangered and protected species of the Houbara Busturd bird species in Pakistan. I just don't understand why we do it. It's like something innately wrong with our people.
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Khalid Masood Jun 19, 2025 02:05pm
The Luxus Hunza scandal is a clarion call for hotels by rivers to prioritize sustainable sewage management. Far from municipal systems, resorts like Luxus must protect fragile ecosystems like Attabad Lake, comply with stringent laws, and uphold eco-conscious reputations. Current practices—septic tanks, package plants, or holding tanks—often fall short, as Luxus’s fine and sealing prove. An MBR system with water reuse is the gold standard, offering pristine effluent, water savings, and a path to redemption. By embracing advanced treatment, water conservation, and guest engagement, hotels can safeguard rivers, avoid Luxus’s fate, and shine as beacons of sustainability. Implementation demands site assessments, regulatory approval, and rigorous maintenance, but the reward is a legacy of environmental stewardship. Let Attabad’s turquoise waters remain untainted, a testament to humanity’s duty to protect nature’s wonders.
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