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Shawnee Peak in Bridgton, Maine, touts is green practices.
Ski resorts across the West for the first time in five years did not significantly increase their activities related to renewable energy and energy efficiency, according to the 2011 Ski Area Environmental Report
Card.
The report also found that ski resorts did very little degrading activity during the same period, which is good news.
“The good news is that ski areas for the second year in a row had minimal increased impacts to endangered species and wetlands on public lands,” according to Ski Area Citizens Coalition Director, Paul Joyce. “This is great news for wildlife and the health of our watersheds.”
Read the full press release for Colorado.
Highlights:
Colorado Ski Resort Grades for 2011
Rank / Grade / Ski Resort Name / Percentage
1 A Powderhorn 89.0%
2 A Aspen Highlands 88.1%
3 A Aspen Mountain 85.7%
4 A Buttermilk 85.2%
5 A Crested Butte 81.8%
6 A Snowmass 81.2%
7 A Wolf Creek 81.0%
8 A V ail 78.8%
9 B Arapahoe Basin 74.1%
10 B Loveland 73.7%
11 B Telluride 73.3%
12 B Beaver Creek 72.2%
13 B Durango 70.7%
14 B Winter Park 70.3%
15 B Keystone 69.9%
16 B Monarch 69.6%
17 B Steamboat 69.0%
18 C Eldora 64.2%
19 C Copper 64.1%
20 D Breckenridge 50.1%
The group also announced that it is going to look at summer activity expansion in its 2012-13 report card.
The Ski Area Recreational Opportunity Enhancement Act that was signed this year makes it easier for ski resorts that are wholly or partially located on federal land to get special permits to allow activities other than nordic or alpine skiing. Activities could include zip lines, disc golf, and advanced mountain biking.
“The Ski Area Citizen’s Coalition supports injecting revenue during slower months in ski towns provided that strong environmental stewardship standards are used,” said Paul Joyce. “We look forward to evaluating resorts’ expanded summer activities on our public lands to ensure that they are creating jobs that are good for endangered species and clean water.”
Scorecard data is obtained from an annual survey, public records from government agencies, and from the resorts themselves. Freedom of Information Act and Public Records Act requests are filed with appropriate land managers to identify ski area development projects and management plans each spring. Resorts are also asked to fill out surveys and regarding their on‐mountain environmental programs. All source documents can be viewed on the website.
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