VAIL, Colo.—Vail Resorts is installing new lighting, switching to more efficient snowmaking equipment and giving SnoCat drivers conservation tips to cut energy use.
Vail Resorts Inc. CEO Rob Katz issued a mandate this spring to the company’s divisions to cut energy use by 5 percent this year and another 5 percent next year.
Chief Operating Officer Chris Jarnot said the company is studying its operations—from snowmaking to dining to grooming—and brainstorming ideas to cut consumption.
“We will absolutely achieve 5 percent this year,” Jarnot said.
The mandate applies to all five of Vail Resorts’ mountains as well as its hotels is projected to save the company $1.5 million in energy costs, Jarnot said.
Energy-saving techniques include new lighting fixtures, new light bulbs and timers for lights and heating. Vail Mountain has also replaced snowmaking equipment so snow guns need less air to blow snow.
The resort is even looking at training SnoCat drivers to manage their throttle and tiller better to save energy.
“More experienced operators become better at using less diesel to groom the same amount of terrain,” Jarnot said.
Solar panels and infrared photography to find where heat is escaping from buildings are other strategies. The company is also converting to four-stroke snowmobiles, which are more efficient and burn fuel more cleanly, and is using snowmobiles less.
The company uses systems that pump outside winter air into refrigerators and freezers.
Vail Mountain is also trying out a special tarp designed to insulate snow, Jarnot said. The plan is to use the tarp to cover big blocks of snow, saving it from year to year and eliminating the need to make lots of snow for large terrain park features.
“The question is, is it good enough quality and can we move it around with a SnoCat, or is it a frozen block of ice?” he said.
