Climate change in the ski industry
Kate Harvey of BirdieBlue working on transforming discarded clothes into new products
BirdieBlue www.shopbirdieblue.com is a company in Stowe, VT that was created to save discarded clothing from ending up in the landfill and give it new life as bags and packs. Company owner Kate Harvey spent three years of product development to refine a process to transform old ski clothes into new sling bags, carryalls, pouches, and packs that are sustainably designed, cut, and handmade by women in the USA.
The BirdieBlue products’ components such as fabrics, zippers, buckles, clasps, and webbing straps are made from upcycled, recycled, or compostable materials. The product labels and clips are made from recycled materials from SA8000 (internationally certified standards) suppliers. The products are packed and shipped in 100% recycled and compostable mailers.
Skiers sporting BirdieBlue packs
Harvey commented that “Upcycled is taking something that exists and transforming into something that gives it new life.” For example, the strap webbing for the packs is made from OLD SEAT BELTS. Her goal is to “keep as many clothes out of landfills as possible.” There are 16 million tons of annual textile waste and only about 15% is recycled or resold while three million tons are incinerated and 10 million tons ends up in a landfill.
To source the fabric materials, BirdieBlue scours thrift stores and ski swaps and collects outerwear donations from individuals and companies. The fabrics are cut into patterns and about 5-10 bags can come from a pair of snowpants or a jacket. Recycled materials are made from other materials that are broken down to create a new material thus the BirdieBlue plastic buckles are made from recycled plastic bottles and the labels and zippers are made from more than fifty percent recycled materials.
With all this sustainability built into the BirdieBlue operation it is no wonder that the company sends its materials that are not reusable to textile recycling outlets which use them as insulation, padding, lining, quilt fillers, and so on.
Cross country skiers on trail with their BirdieBlue packs
People who want to discard old clothes can access the BirdieBlue website “Used Gear Kit” form and they’ll send you a mailer that you can use to deliver old clothes to the company. BirdieBlue will be managing a booth and hosting the Revive, Reuse, and Recycle Zone at the Snowbound Expo Boston Ski Show (Nov 3-5 at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center) where individuals can donate old snow clothes (snow pants, ski bibs, ski jackets, tents, windbreakers, etc.), cut them at a station in the booth, and create a limited edition bag. There will also be a retail station at the show to purchase BirdieBlue products.
BirdieBlue is a member of 1% for the Planet whereby 1% of every sale is donated to support environmental organizations. The company is committed to paying living wages, supporting local economies and building safe working environments. The company mission is to inspire adventure and protect Mother Earth.
Gore Mountain's solar array
The recreation of skiing while a healthy and fun activity is often attacked on the grounds of ski areas being energy hogs, but to the contrary, they have been doing plenty, that in reality make them leaders among businesses for sustainable and renewable energy.
Here are some sustainability leading efforts at Alpine ski areas in the east:
BOLTON VALLEY and BERKSHIRE EAST
Bolton Valley in VT has had its 121 foot tall wind turbine since 2009 annually producing 300,000 kwH of power and generating electricity at wind speeds as low as 6 mph. The ski resort uses net metering for a price reduction on electric rates and the energy produced is the equivalent of 45 Vermont households. The system was installed by Northern Power Systems. Ice on the blades does happen and the turbine shuts off automatically when it gets iced, thus making the winter months the least productive for the wind turbine. Waste heat is used in the pump house and pellet stoves are used to heat the base lodge. High efficiency snowmaking guns are used at Bolton and LED outdoor lights saves 1,195 kWh per year/
In 2011, Berkshire East of MA added a PowerWind 56,900 kWh wind turbine and in 2012, formed a construction and power purchase agreement with All Earth Renewables, to build and use the electricity from a 1800 panel, 500 kWh solar tracking system. These additions, make Berkshire East the first ski area in the world to be 100% powered by onsite renewable energy. They also installed 500 LED lights. According to the ski area website, they burn wood harvested on site for heat and replaced fuel oil burners and replaced 400 night light for skiing with LED bulbs that can be turned off remotely. Berkshire East has signed an agreement to pioneer a micro pump water energy system, which pumps water up when electric rates are low and drains that water through turbines to produce power when the price of power is high.
Bolton Valley's wind turbine
KILLINGTON
Killington Resort in Vermont is among the ski industry leaders in sustainable operations. Killington’s numerous solar power projects include 14 AllEarth Solar Trackers and 3 rooftop solar installations which combined generate 200,000 kWh of energy. Killington also partners with Namaste Solar to operate off site solar farms in Vermont which generate about 3,100,000 kWh of clean electricity annually for the resort and sister property, Pico Mountain.
The AllEarth Solar Trackers which have been designed, tested and engineered in Vermont use GPS technology to follow the sun throughout the day, allowing them to produce up to 45 percent more energy than a fixed system.
The solar projects at Killington generate more than 10 percent of the resort’s annual usage. The electricity produced from all solar initiatives would power 370 homes annually and conserve 2,471 metric tons of CO2, according to the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator.
The Cow Power program is a unique form of producing energy whereby about a dozen Vermont farmers use cow manure at their farms in an anerobic digester system to generate electricity to sell to Green Mountain Power and Killington purchases 1,125,000 kWh annually of this energy to power the K-1 Gondola and the Peak Lodge.
Killington has installed 47 EV car chargers around the resort and in 2019 composted and recycled to divert 201,600 pounds of food scraps from the landfill (this represented about 25% of the total waste produced at Killington).
Ridership with the regional transportation for resort related trips exceed 375,000 one-way trips. The Freeaire Refrigeration system pulls cold air into the cooler system when the outside temperature is below 40 degrees while shutting off the coolers internal evaporator fans whenever possible. This system reduces energy usage and CO2 emissions by about 13.2 tons per year. The wastewater treatment facilities recycle treated wastewater effluent for use in toilets and during the winter this conserves about 35,000 gallons of fresh water daily.
GORE MOUNTAIN
Gore Mountain in North Creek, NY Gore Mountain is home to a 25-year solar energy project, the largest solar array dedicated to a ski area in the United States. In 2016, 14,589 ground-mounted solar panels were constructed on 20 acres. Gore is actively decreasing energy use and continuing a long-term investment in high-efficiency snowmaking. The solar array saved nearly $124,000 in one year and the new, efficient snow guns saved 860,000 kWh of energy translating to a reduction of 946,000 pounds of carbon dioxide. These projects make Gore an industry model for its reduction of kilowatt-hours used and offsets of CO2.
Gore is also expanding recycling, creatively repurposing buildings and materials, offering locally produced foods, and making strategic trail modifications. The reduced use of salt in Gore’s parking lots is helping to protect the environment
Gore Mountain’s fleet of snowcats now runs on the latest Tier 4 engines as well as an E+ Hybrid 600 cat, which makes Gore’s fleet some of the cleanest and quietest snow groomers in the industry. These state-of-the-art engines reduce both emissions and noise pollution, all while increasing performance.
Gore Mountain is continuously adding more new high-efficiency, low-energy snowmaking tower guns to the trails. The Mountain has also upgraded its snowmaking system to save energy, allowing more trails to open earlier in the season and deliver the best snow conditions possible.
JIMINY PEAK
Jiminy Peak's wind turbine
Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort located in the heart of the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts constructed a 2.3 megawatt community solar facility located on 12 acres of the ski area and resort's property, owned and operated by nexamp. Renewable energy is not new to the resort – back in 2007 it was the first ski area in North America to generate power from its own GE 1.5 MW wind turbine.
The solar project significantly expanded Jiminy Peak's renewable energy program, while extending the environmental and cost-saving benefits of solar to up to 200 neighboring homes and small businesses. By adding the solar power facility to Jiminy Peak's existing wind turbine, 75 kWh cogeneration unit, and extensive conservation efforts, the resort can claim to be one of the few resorts in the U.S. powered 100% by renewable energy and one of the most sustainable energy ski resorts.
NORDIC SKI AREAS
Nordic ski areas are also becoming more sustainable. Craftsbury Outdoor Center in VT has incorporated sustainability in its mission statement to be carbon neutral. At Craftsbury Outdoor Center everything is net metered with 32kW on the trackers and 3,000 square feet of panels on the roof, supplying the Activity Center with close to 70 kWh. Between the two, that provides 63% of operation’s electricity and there is also solar thermal to provide summertime domestic hot water, which is supplemented with heat pumps.
Craftsbury has incorporated massive amounts of insulation into all of the new buildings, and locally sourced many of the wood products used in the building construction. The roof of the Activity Center is at R72 and the walls are R46.
Solar panels at Craftsbury Outdoor Center
High efficiency wood gasifying boilers provides all of the heating and domestic hot water demands during the cooler months. They're tied into the 10 million BTUs of thermal storage in the form of 20,000 gallons of water. This storage system allows them to cogenerate with the snowmaking generator - providing electricity for the pumps and guns, and catching waste heat off the engine.
Sleepy Hollow Inn Ski & Bike Center in Huntington, VT added 10 kWh of solar and now has 50 kWh of solar net metering from its solar panel arrays to provide for electric needs that include power for a snowmaking system used to guarantee snow early in the season. A solar hot water system heats 50% of the hot water use at the inn and the lights on the ski trail have been converted to LED lights. Sleepy Hollow Proprietor Eli Enman commented, "By April, we're expecting to see that close to 100% of our total electricity would've been powered by solar energy and that includes our all-electric snowmaking system water and air pumps." The Sleepy Hollow invested $50,000 to convert its diesel engine trail groomer to a full-sized battery powered machine.
These investments at eastern ski areas are only a few examples of what the resorts are doing to take the lead in becoming sustainable businesses.
Waste diversion efforts at Vail Resorts ski areas
Cross country ski areas that apply the most sustainable efforts in the industry
Sleepy Hollow Ski & Bike Center in Vermont is one of the most sustainable resorts in the USA. They’ve acquired the Prinoth Husky eMotion electric grooming machine to tend to the trails at the center.
Traditional XC ski area snowfarming
A new way to guarantee the early start of the ski season was revolutionized by Craftsbury Outdoor Center in Vermont in 2019. The cross country (XC) ski area partnered with the University of Vermont on a project to develop an innovative snow storage system to guarantee one to three kilometers of skiable snow during November.
The primary challenge of XC ski areas is the weather as they are mostly located in regions of low altitude, high humidity and low latitude which are all bad characteristics for getting natural snow or using traditional snowmaking. Recent machine-made snow technology has become much more efficient, but alpine ski resorts that rely heavily on snowmaking have the benefit of higher altitudes compared to XC ski areas and they have a much larger financial operation to afford the cost of wide-scale snowmaking. Even though snowmaking systems can be expensive there are about 40 XC ski resorts across North America that employ these systems on a small scale.
The goal for an early start to the season is to guarantee programming at a time when demand is high for cross country skiing. Late in the year, the challenge involves consumer interest as skiers mostly prefer to begin spring outdoor sports like bicycling rather than skiing.
Snowmaking piles
The pile and haul method is common for XC ski areas whereby they take snow from a pile (where there is more snow available) and haul it on to the trail. Snowmaking can be done to create a pile in an open area near the lodge. The snow brought to the trails is then groomed with a snowmobile, snowcat or other machinery. With the pile and haul method, most ski areas take existing snow from one location and move it to a place on the trails in areas that are not covered. For example at Jackson Ski Touring in NH (top photo), snow was shoveled and moved from higher elevations and brought to cover a one kilometer trail in the village of Jackson.
When the XC ski area has a snowmaking operation, it can make the snow when it is cold and then spread the snow to the trails. More sophisticated and more expensive snowmaking systems run piping along the trails and blow snow in the corridor at various locations followed by a grooming procedure.
Protecting the snow pile with wood chips
Snowmaking is much more efficient when the temperatures are colder so it makes sense to produce the snow on the coldest days and nights. Making snow in November is iffy because of the uncertainty of temperatures and humidity (snowmaking is best and least costly per the volume of snow produced in the coldest and driest weather). In Europe, snow storing systems have successfully been utilized, but Craftsbury is novel because of its southerly and mild location compared to those areas.
At Craftsbury Outdoors, about 9,000 cubic meters of snow was produced last February in a site that was conducive to storage where melting through the summer’s warmer months would be minimal. The machine-produced snow has much less water content compared to natural snow and thus it resists melting (melts substantially more slowly). New energy-efficient airless snow guns that used between a quarter to a third of the power compared to older model snowmaking guns, were acquired by Craftsbury to make the snow. Craftsbury also generates electricity (solar panels) that is net metered (sold to the power company) and they have a heat recapture unit on the generator to provide heat to dorms that provides housing.
The snow pile was shaped with an excavator to pack it densely and then after waiting for it to transform into corn snow in the springtime, the pile was surrounded with wood chips. A variety of covers were tested to insulate the pile and a white mylar space blanket was stretched across the pile to reflect sunlight.
The results were that about 65% of the snow pile by volume remained (5-6,000 cubic meters of usable snow) and that translates to 2-3 kilometers of trail coverage at 50 cm depth and a few meters wide.
After the snow is dumped on the trails, a snowcat then grooms the snow on the trails to produce skiable trails. This year the operation was interrupted by an early snowstorm that covered the trails. The area had about 25 kilometers of trails open in November. The entire process was outlined and cataloged at the University of Vermont by Professor Paul Beirman and can be viewed at uvm.edu/~snowstor
Working the snow pile
Craftsbury is analyzing the costs of the operation for machinery fuel, staff hours, and so on. The concept has proven that it can guarantee the early season programming, much of which centers around training for advanced athletes but there will be other avenues to be explored for recreational programs. With the continuing onset of climate change, running a XC ski area business has become more of a daunting challenge. The trail coverage is difficult as autumn becomes milder, and there are more rain storms in the winter and more meltdown periods. Ski areas that have spread snow using the old labor-intensive way without snowmaking may want to consider investing in a snowmaking operation if they want to guarantee their operational opening and associated programming.
The sustainable efforts at cross country ski industry product supplier companies
The Craftsbury Outdoor Center in Vermont has one of the most sustainable facilities for it's touring Center, as well as a café, fitness room, waxing room, meeting space and more. This structure was built to be energy-efficient and environmentally friendly, using energy-saving designs and local materials wherever possible.
The Craftsbury facility has 3,000 square feet of photovoltaic solar panels on the roof, which will be set up for net metering (selling electric power to the energy company when possible), so that the facility will have net-zero annual electricity usage. There are also 8 tracking solar arrays and the panels produce 39,000-50,000 KWh annually offsetting about 35% of the Outdoor Center electricity.
The building structure incorporated locally-sourced wood for paneling and recycled steel beams for support. The interior siding is source from New Hampshire and the furniture legs were from the Craftsbury Outdoor Center site.
The locker rooms feature composting toilets, as well as low-flow water fixtures, timed showers, and hand-dryers to minimize paper towel waste. The heating system incorporates waste heat from the snowmaking system along with a high-efficiency wood boiler, supplemented with solar thermal and an air-to-water heat pump as needed. An electric charging station will be installed near the building in the future for electric vehicles.
The Green Racing Project ski athletes joined forces with the Highfields Center for Composting to design and build a system with bins for the composting process. The kitchen works with local food as much as possible with 40-50% of the ingredients coming from neighbors in Vermont. The on-site gardens and farm animals raised during the summer contribute to this effort.
Solar panels that are trackers provide as much as 50% of Craftsbury Outdoor Center electricity
The net-zero Activity Center showcases features including 3,000 square feet of solar panels on the roof, while the window sizes and roof overhangs are optimized for the weather. The facility has Trombe walls and an EarthTube air exchange unit works with the thermal mass of concrete floors and insulated concrete walls to keep the facility comfortable in both winter and summer.
The long term forest management plan combines protection for the water and soil, wildlife habitat maintenance, recreational use, production of commercial forest products such as saw timber and firewood. The Craftsbury Outdoor Center mission includes the use and teaching of sustainable practices and back in 2004, Craftsbury Outdoor Center joined the Green Hotels program and its Cedar Lodge was designated as green by the organization. The business is exemplary for others in the cross country ski world.
Farm to Feet is an exemplary sustainable business
Sustainability efforts at Burton Snowboards
Product responsibility
Who is responsible for recycling to reduce plastic, cardboard and paper packaging waste – those who use products or those who produce products? Recent articles in the New York Times and Associated Press informed about the Natural Resources Council of Maine program to address the volatile commodities recycling market that would charge product producers a fee based on factors such as product packaging tonnage. Funds would be paid into a state run non-profit producer responsibility organization. These funds would be used to reimburse municipal governments for their recycling operations. In July 2021, The Maine governor signed into law the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging legislation to initiate a program in Maine. Similar programs have been developed in Europe, Japan, South Korea and five Canadian provinces. In the US similar legislated programs are pending with Oregon and six other states, while four additional states have expressed interest to join the movement.
According to the Product Stewardship Institute, a growing movement in the U.S. seeks to ensure that those who design, manufacture, sell, and use consumer products take responsibility for reducing negative impacts to the economy, environment, public health, and worker safety. These impacts can occur throughout the lifecycle of a product and its packaging, and are associated with energy and materials consumption; waste generation; toxic substances; greenhouse gases; and other air and water emissions. In a product stewardship approach, manufacturers that design products and specify packaging have the greatest ability, and therefore greatest responsibility, to reduce these impacts by attempting to incorporate the full lifecycle costs into the cost of doing business.
The concept of the extended product responsibility (EPR) program is to cover municipal recycling operation costs and to provide an incentive for companies to reconsider the design materials used in packaging. There would be higher fees for hard to recycle packaging. Companies can lower their payments by implementing their own independent recycling programs or simply by reducing packaging. There are currently 33 states with some form of EPR law, but most are very narrow (limited to for example, mattresses or paint). The Times article stated that since 2008 the state of Connecticut has diverted 26 million pounds of waste, and consumer price increases related to recycling were found to be $0.0056 per pound in an Oregon study.
Gail Thompson photo on Maine Natural Resources Council site
In Ireland, paper and plastic recycling rates have increased from 19% in the year 2000 to 65% in 2017 and many European Union countries have attained 60—80% rates. According to the Product Stewardship Institute, the U.S. has had a 32% decline in the recycling rate which was impacted by the 2017 Chinese decision to stop importing other nations’ plastic recyclables.
By the way, plastics consume about 20% of all the oil that is produced. While these facts are important, an example of the relevance of these recycling issues is that in Oregon 44 cities and 12 counties have stopped collecting plastics to be recycled. The Maine program is expected to cover about 40% of the waste stream in Maine. It is also expected that the law will help to make recycling programs across the state more uniform.
The packaging and retail industry organizations are opposed to EPR programs on various grounds. These organizations favor incentives to create new markets for recycling materials. Their view is that there is too much government authority and that if such a program is to be instituted that it would be better managed by the industry. Support has been pledged for these EPR programs among many organizations in the product stewardship community and even some companies such as Coke, Walmart, and Unilever. It remains to be seen if some product companies will opt to pull out of states where there are EPR programs or pass on the costs to consumers.
Climate Change impact on snow sports industry
Charge up electric vehicles at Killington Resort in Vermont
Vermont’s Killington is now New England’s largest electric car charging hub with a total of 47 electric vehicle chargers throughout the resort’s properties. These chargers include 30 Tesla and 17 universal.
As a part of parent company POWDR’s Play Forever sustainability efforts, Killington and Pico added additional electric vehicles chargers throughout Killington Resort and Pico Mountain at the Sykeship Base Area, Snowshed Base Area, Snowshed Upper Parking Lot, K-1 Base Area and Pico Base Area for a total of 47 electric car chargers.
“It is our goal to make Killington and Pico world-class properties in sustainability, and we have high expectations for ourselves and from our guests to be innovative when it comes to environmental responsibility,” said Mike Solimano, president and general manager of Killington Resort. “The addition of the electric vehicle chargers provide access to our guests who have electric vehicles and an opportunity for more guests to see having an EV is a viable option to reduce their carbon footprint while visiting our resorts.”
Solar panel installed at Killington for 3 million kWh annually
Killington and Pico also have eight new solar installations on-site for 2017-18, including fourteen AllEarth Solar Trackers which have been designed, tested and engineered in Vermont. The units use GPS technology to follow the sun throughout the day, allowing them to produce up to 45 percent more energy than a fixed system. The trackers, plus three new rooftop installations on the Pico Base Lodge, Pico Administration Building and Killington Golf Course Maintenance Building are expected to generate approximately 200,000 kWh of clean electricity annually.
In addition to the on-mountain solar installations, Killington partnered with Namaste Solar to develop four off-site solar farms within a short drive from the mountain. The four projects will generate more than 3,100,000 kWh of electricity per year, which is more than 10 percent of the resort’s annual usage. The electricity produced from all solar initiatives would power 370 homes annually and conserve 2,471 metric tons of CO2, according to the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator.
Other ski areas with EV charging (be aware of port levels and Tesla exclusivity) include:
Steven Pass, WA;
Northstar, Squaw Valley, Tahoe area CA;
Diamond Peak, Tahoe area NV
Snowbird, Brighton, Park City, UT
Copper, Breckenridge, Vail, Snowmass, Steamboat in Colorado
Jackson Hole, WY
This article was contributed by Martha Wilson of SnoCountry.com
Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort located in the heart of the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts constructed a 2.3 megawatt community solar facility located on 12 acres of the ski area and resort's property, owned and operated by nexamp. Renewable energy is not new to the resort – back in 2007 it was the first ski area in North America to generate power from its own GE 1.5 MW wind turbine.
The solar project significantly expanded Jiminy Peak's renewable energy program, while extending the environmental and cost-saving benefits of solar to up to 200 neighboring homes and small businesses. By adding the solar power facility to Jiminy Peak's existing wind turbine, 75 kWh cogeneration unit, and extensive conservation efforts, the resort can claim to be one of the few resorts in the U.S. powered 100% by renewable energy and one of the most sustainable energy ski resorts.
Solar and Wind Energy
The solar project significantly expanded Jiminy Peak's renewable energy program. All power generated by the 7,500-module solar facility is exported to the grid. Resort president Tyler Fairbank said, "We receive net metering credits in return. Half the net metering credits are utilized by Jiminy Peak and the balance by about 200 neighboring homes and small businesses in the local area."
The resort uses all the power generated by the wind turbine according to Jim Van Dyke, vice president of environmental sustainability, and a veteran 43-year employee who commented “The turbine handles 33% of our energy needs on an annual basis, up to 66% in the winter when the winds blow strongest. Any excess energy is sent out to the grid and Jiminy receives a net metering credit, which is used when we need to purchase energy from the grid. So in that fashion we now use 100% of the electricity that the turbine generates.”
Lighting, Recycling, and Cogeneration
Jiminy has upgraded to more efficient lighting and programmable thermostats in the lodges, and the resort more than doubled the energy efficiency of the lights used on the slopes for night skiing. In the Country Inn, 658 lights were converted to LEDs to be more efficient and 230 slopeside lights have been replaced with lighter, brighter, more energy efficient LED lighting covering 60 percent of the mountain. The difference has been likened to that between a manila envelope and a white envelope.
Waste oil is taken from snowmaking compressors, grooming machines, and all vehicles to heat the Mountain Operations building using approximately 200 gallons of waste oil per year and the process avoids the storage and disposal of old used oil.
Jiminy Peak installed a cogeneration unit in the Country Inn. The unit uses propane gas that powers a turbine that in turn produces hot water for use throughout the Inn. This hot water also provides the heating source for the central core of the building that includes the year-round outdoor pool, hot tubs, and John Harvard's Restaurant & Brewery, too.
Using the heat from two snowmaking compressors to heat 34,000 square feet of space in 3 Village Center buildings avoids the need of an equivalent of 63,800 kWh.
The towel and sheet program in the lodge rooms saves about 25,000 gallons of water a year by only washing the sheets and towels when requested by guests staying for more than one night. They've eliminated the use of toxic cleaning agents and only use green, biodegradable solvents and cleaners. Conversion to waterless urinals in bathrooms of several buildings and at JJ's Lodge saves 40,000 gallons of water per urinal.
Snowmaking
Zephyr Wind Turbine is a selfie magnet atop Jiminy Peak!
Jiminy averages 615 acre feet of snow per winter using machine-made snow and approximately 123,000,000 gallons of water. The entire 450-gun snowmaking arsenal was replaced with energy-efficient Snowgun Technologies “Sledgehammer” snowguns. The new guns convert more water with less air and at warmer temperatures than traditional snowguns. This means the resort runs air compressors for fewer hours, consuming less electricity, while producing 100% more snow (assuming Mother Nature cooperates).
For example, the snowmaking system's old technology would have required 4,566,100 kWh ten years ago versus 1,368,326 kWh today. The annual savings is 70% in energy or 3,197,774 kWh.
Slope Grooming
Jiminy Peak has equipped two PistenBully groomers with digital mapping and GPS to tell drivers exactly how much snow is beneath their treads, blades and rollers. The maps are based on aerial photography captured during summer, and are accurate to within two inches (5 cm). “Rather than eyeball it, the SNOWSat technology allows us to more precisely gauge depth and place more snow where the cover is thin, and less where the cover is already sufficient for skiing or riding. This means fewer passes by groomers,” Van Dyke explains, noting that Jiminy Peak is one of only a few resorts in the U.S. using the new technology.
Speaking of groomers, Jiminy Peak is purchasing the new energy efficient Pisten Bully 600 E+ snowcat, one of three in use in the northeast. Kassbohrer’s Pisten Bully “Green Machine” 600E+ is the world’s first groomer with a diesel-electric drive. One of the most significant advancements in snowgrooming technology over the past two decades, the 600 E+ uses a diesel engine to drive two electric generators which power electric motors that turn the tracks and the snow tiller. It reduces the emission of nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxides by 20%, produces 99% fewer sooty particles and registers a 20% fuel savings over their standard 600 model.
Transportation
There are plans at Jiminy Peak for the installation of four EV charging stations, working with an Albany, N.Y. EV Drivers Club, with support from Tesla. Van Dyke notes that EV car owners, in addition to saving on fossil fuels, will be recharging with renewable electricity generated by both solar and wind.
Jiminy Peak has won environmental recognition, but awards are not why Jiminy Peak Resorts conserves and invests in renewable energy. Fairbank reflected, "Conservation is practiced every day at Jiminy Peak. It's part of our corporate DNA. We have an in-house energy management team that conducts an on-going and aggressive program to help us to identify and curtail energy waste and research ways to source 100 percent of our energy from renewable resources. They are constantly evaluating opportunities for savings. Our renewable efforts have come from facilities we've built and we’re proud for reaching 100% of our electricity energy, which is from local, on site-generated renewable resources."
Recently, a gentleman from Quebec drove his 2012 Ford Focus Electric car up the Mt. Washington Auto Road to the summit of the Northeast’s highest peak. This was the first mass produced all electric vehicle to reach the peak taking the winding 8-mile road with an average grade of 12%.
Sylvain Juteau of Three Rivers, Quebec drove the car 800 miles from his home town to a vacation in Maine and then decided to take the car to the summit of nearby Mt. Washington, located in Pinkham Notch, NH. He commented, “You can easily get 100,000 miles from your batteries and brake pads and the real time data you get from the car teaches you to drive more intelligently while the brakes regenerate the battery when you slow down.”
The car requires 2.5 hours to charge and can run on the charge for about 100 miles. Juteau used about half of his available charge on the way up and he recovered and recharged on the way down the mountain road. The auto road is one of the nation’s oldest man-made attractions opening in 1861. In fact, the first automobile that climbed the road in 1899 was a Stanley Steamer driven by Freelon O. Stanley himself. For info about the auto road check www.mtwashingtonautoroad.com
This story brought back memories of my first ride in a hybrid Toyota Prius in 2001with a friend, who was a newly elected official in Colorado. One of the perks of his political position was a vehicle to use and my friend felt compelled to request a hybrid car instead of a 4-wheel drive that the other officials had always requested. Over the years, this memory encouraged me to often suggest that all government automobile purchases should be electric vehicles and while the government might put its money where its mouth should be, all public buildings should have roof top solar collectors, too. Can you imagine what this level of purchases would do for these products or how it could lead the way to fight climate change?
Instead, even though there were 200,000 of the Toyota Prius sold in 2012, it was announced that General Motors has idled the assembly plant, which manufactures the electric Chevy Volt because they’ve sold less than half of their annual projection (13,500 cars sold and 40,000 projected sales). The electric Nissan Leaf had sold 4,288 in 2012 through August. And the Ford Focus Electric vehicle, the car that made it to the top of Mt. Washington had sold only 169 (in the USA). Think about the number of vehicles if every level of government (town, city, county, state, Federal) was mandated to purchase electric vehicles starting this year; hmmm, that’s a big number.
Electric Vehicle Charging Station Installed on Auto Road
In an August 2013 followup to the above story, the Mt. Washington Auto Road has installed the first ever Electric Vehicle Charging Station. Less than 24 hours later, the all electric vehicle, a Tesla S Model, pulled in for a charge. The Auto Road does not "charge for a charge", though a donation slot is there for those so inclined. Fifteen more Teslas from the New England chapter of the Tesla Car Club arrived for a drive to the summit.
Auto Road GM Howie Wemyss decided this was the year to have the Clipper Creek CS 90 charger installed. "Considering that we are hosting the Mt. Washington Auto Road Alt Energy Summit event here on September 14 and 15, there couldn't be a better time to make this kind of energy available onsite," Wemyss noted. "We are looking at adding an electric vehicle to our line-up sometime this year and have been evaluating various alternative fuel sources for our stages, as well," Wemyss added. The Auto Road currently derives about 80% of the energy used for the base building operations from an onsite hydro power source.
Daniel Einspanjer, a Tesla S model owner and organizer of the group's gathering commented, "The trip up and down the mountain was as breath-taking as always and everyone enjoyed it. As expected, the trip down was excellent. The cars could not have been built better for descending a mountain. Stable, low to the ground, and aerodynamic, the cars handle wonderfully on the road. Additionally, the regenerative braking means that you don't have to worry about a straining engine or overheating brakes as the car gracefully glides down at a comfortable and safe speed requiring only occasional touches of the brakes at the hairpin turns."
Perhaps even more impressive than the view and drive down was the energy consumption data: "The 8 mile long and 4,600 feet high ascent consumes somewhere between 12 and 14 kW of energy (about 40 to 45 miles of rated range), while the descent reclaims between 5 and 7 kW of energy (about 20 to 23 miles of rated range) through regenerative braking. There are currently more than 13,000 Teslas on the road in the US" Einspanjer noted.
In 2016 Vermont ski resorts invested nearly $15 million to upgrade their snowmaking equipment, thanks in part to an innovative rebate offer from Efficiency Vermont. Efficiency Vermont's Great Snow Gun Roundup which supported the purchase of approximately 2,300 new low energy snow guns for the season, and in return the resorts donated 1,800 older model snow guns to scrap. The snow gun exchange program helped the state's ski industry reduce carbon emissions and save $2 million a year in energy costs.
Jim Merriam, executive director of Efficiency Vermont, said he hoped to replace 3,000 older snow guns with ones that are 85 to 90 percent more efficient. Funding for the program came from the surcharge utility customers in the state pay to support Efficiency Vermont. While some may balk at having to subsidize snowmaking upgrades for private ski resorts, Merriam said the energy savings benefits everyone, since we all share the same power grid.
Efficiency Vermont said they counted 3,000 -3,300 older technology guns at the beginning of the summer, and about 1,800 -2,000 of those were scrapped. The estimated annual energy savings from this swap is equivalent to saving enough electricity to supply approximately 1,500 homes for one full year, and enough diesel saved to heat 340 homes annually. These new guns are not only saving tons of energy for resorts, which will allow them to rely on less power and lower emissions, but they also create better quality snow surfaces and enable resorts to blow snow at higher temperatures, extending the ski season for winter revelers everywhere.
"An industry-wide upgrade in snowmaking efficiency of this magnitude has never been seen before," said Parker Riehle, former Vermont Ski Areas Association President. "We are very proud of our partnership with Efficiency Vermont and that our resorts are leading the way in switching to low energy technology.” To help ski areas determine the efficient snow guns that would best meet their needs, Efficiency Vermont engineers conducted side-by-side testing of fifteen different models, tracking data on their air, water, energy consumption, and overall performance. Modern, energy efficient snow guns require up to 85% less energy to operate than older snow gun models, and the new snow guns being installed this year represent the most advanced.
Efficiency Vermont donated proceeds from the scrapped metal of old snow guns to Ski Vermont's Learn to Turn program, which encourages people to embrace winter and try skiing through programs such as Learn to Ski month, the Fifth Grade Passport, and Bring a Friend challenge.
Efficiency Vermont was created by the Vermont Legislature and the Vermont Public Service Board to help all Vermonters reduce energy costs, strengthen the economy, and protect Vermont's environment. For more information, contact Efficiency Vermont at 888-921-5990 or visit the site. Photo: Snow guns at Rikert Nordic Center in Ripton, VT.