Responsible Tourism - Deer Valley
Ski Safari asked Deer Valley whether the resort is a member of an Environmental Accreditation Body....
National Ski Area Association (NSAA) Sustainable Slopes was set in place for North American Resorts to establish a committment to responsible stewardship and improve environmental performance industry wide.
Ski Safari asked whether Deer Valley or an independent consultant conduct environmental audits of the resort....
As a result of energy audits performed with the assistance of Rocky Mountain Power last winter season, Deer Valley identified numerous energy efficiency opportunities and implemented several on snowmaking systems and chairlift operations. Consultant Mark Case, who assisted Deer Valley with the measures and implementation, reports that, “By implementing new energy efficient systems, Deer Valley saved a fair amount of electricity last winter. Doing the math it was the equivalent of 390,000 kilowatt hours annually, and reduces carbon dioxide emissions by more than 400 tons a year. That’s the same as 920,000 miles driven by a car, the equivalent of taking 80 cars off the road every year or planting 135 trees each year. In addition, saving that electricity reduces other pollutants including sulphur dioxide, mercury and nitrogen oxide."
Deer Valley Resort also participates in Rocky Mountain Power’s Blue Sky renewable energy program. The Blue Sky program gives Rocky Mountain Power customers the opportunity to purchase clean, renewable wind energy. Deer Valley will pay more for the renewable energy sources than they would conventional electricity, but say it’s worth it. As Rocky Mountain Power’s Web site describes, “When customers purchase Blue Sky, they are spurring more renewable energy development above what Rocky Mountain Power already invests in on behalf of all of its customers. Therefore, Blue Sky customers make a positive impact to the environment. Since our prices are regulated, we are required to provide the lowest-cost electricity. The company’s least-cost plan for power generation includes a substantial amount of renewable, such as wind and geothermal. Above these levels, Rocky Mountain Power customers can spur even more to renewable development by purchasing Blue Sky. Overall, greater demand will lower prices for renewable power, which in turn will enable our nation to include a larger percentage of renewable energy into its power mix.
Ski Safari asked Deer Valley about its environmental policy...
All ski resorts, whether on public or private land, are charged with being stewards of the land. It's a responsibility that should not be taken lightly and we at Deer Valley certainly do not. Deer Valley is one of the more than 170 resorts to endorse the National Ski Area Association's (NSAA) Sustainable Slopes Environmental Charter for Ski Areas. The Environmental Charter, commonly known as Sustainable Slopes, is a collection of environmental best practices for ski area owners and operators.
Upon endorsing the Charter, participating resorts agree to designate an environmental contact person, assess their policies and operations against the environmental principles in the Charter and take steps toward improved environmental performance. Each year an Annual Report is compiled from among participating resorts, the purpose of which is to provide information on resorts' progress in implementing the Environmental Principles of the Charter, highlight the contributions of the partners and set goals for the future. To view a copy of Sustainable Slopes or this year's annual report, log onto http://www.nsaa.org/
"Deer Valley sponsors numerous reseeding and recycling programs and more," says Bob Wheaton, resort president and general manager. "Although Deer Valley is located entirely on private lands, the Forest Service brings tours through Deer Valley so that we can help broaden their perspectives on what we're doing here. They, in turn, have brought their concessionaires to Deer Valley and used us as an example of good management practices. The truth is, we've been working on environmental practices for years without anyone telling us or forcing us to do it. Surveys, scorecards or not, we'll continue with the environmentally friendly practices we have in place and continue to focus on adopting new, innovative programs."
Ski Safari asked Deer Resort whether the resort limits environmental impact (e.g. usage of renewable energy sources, waste management and recycling programmes etc?)....
Yes:
950 Acres of Open Space Preserved at Flagstaff Mountain
A partnership between United Park City Mines, Deer Valley Resort, the City of Park City and COOL (Conserving Our Open Lands) secured almost 1000 acres of land with conservation easements during the summer of 2002. The open-space land is located on Deer Valley's Flagstaff Mountain and in Empire Canyon adjacent to the Empire Pass development of United Park. Both Recreational Open Space and Protected Open Space will be preserved.
Forest Service Management Plan
"We practice a forest management plan that the Utah State Forester put together for us in 1986," says Chuck English, resort director of mountain operations. "It's an ongoing project to enhance the health of our tree stands. By thinning trees, we create openings in the forest so that healthier trees can flourish."
Reseeding and Revegetation
Deer Valley Resort uses a specially designed seed mix developed in concert with the State of Utah and the U.S. Forest Service. The mix is a combination of native grasses that have large rootballs, which helps address erosion problems. It's drought tolerant, so it grows well with natural moisture and does not need to be watered; and it's also a mix that wildlife likes to eat. Deer Valley planted six tons of native grass seed on resort grounds over the course of the last few summers. "We've seen a real increase in elk and deer herds as well as moose on the mountain," says Wheaton. "I believe it's a combination of the Forest Service Management Plan, the reseeding we do and the fact that we restrict hunting within our resort boundaries." The Resort has also planted thousands of new trees on its property since 1981.
Water Testing
Deer Valley tests its runoff water in two different locations at the resort. The resort tests for "total suspended solids" as well as phosphates, nitrogen and three other chemicals and minerals. "The water that runs off the resort is actually cleaner now than before the resort opened," says Wheaton.
Recycling
"We do a ton of recycling at Deer Valley," says Chris Anderson, resort maintenance manager. "We recycle everything we can. The lodges and offices recycle paper, glass, aluminum, junk mail, phone books and cardboard. We even recycle all of our old trail maps and brochures. The Resort uses EcoSoft, a Green Seal Certified paper product in all of our lodge restrooms. Glassware and china plates are used in the restaurants to cut down on paper and Styrofoam use. Aluminum, glass and plastic are recycled in the restaurants behind the scenes by our restaurant attendants after they bus guest tables. We have been using water-based paint in our maintenance department since opening the Resort and have really been proactive in trying to use greener products that are water-based, environmentally friendly and biodegradable. Under EPA guidelines, we properly dispose of all of our paint waste products, contaminated unleaded fuel and diesel fuel, oil filters and absorbents and fluorescent lighting. The maintenance shop also recycles anti-freeze and oils when possible as well as all of our rubber products, from bull wheel liners to tires to snowcat track belting. We also recycle a large amount of scrap steel, copper, brass and stainless steel."
Energy Efficiency
"We use lower-energy lighting to reduce energy costs and use," says Anderson. "We've switched over to low-mercury bulbs. They work well and save energy. We believe that with the improvements we've made, the fine tuning we've done in our lodges (like putting heating and lighting systems on timers), we save up to 9,600 kilowatt hours per year.
Snowmaking
A new snowmaking lake in the Snow Park base area north of Snow Park Lodge holds five million gallons of water. This water will be used for snowmaking during the winter months, converting storage water from a liquid state to frozen snow. During Spring melt-off the water returns to the snowmaking lake for future use.
Ski Safari asked whether Deer Valley is involved in any local or national social projects (e.g. community projects, housing schemes for employees etc.)....
Yes - Summit Land Conservancy. Deer Valley supports the Summit Land Conservancy by donations as well as offering our guests the opportunity to donate 1% of their purchase price of Locals Coupon Books, Season Passes, lodging, ski school lessons and ski equipment rentals. The Summit Land Conservancy is a local, non-profit land trust dedicated to protecting as much of the remaining open land in Summit County as possible. For more information, please visit summitlandconservancy.org.
Ski Safari asked whether Deer Valley offset its carbon emissions...
Yes - Participation in PacifiCorp/Utah Power's Blue Sky Program. Deer Valley signed on as a participant in PacifiCorp/Utah Power's sustainable energy initiative. The Blue Sky program gives Utah Power customers the opportunity to purchase clean, renewable wind energy. Customers buy 100 kilowatt-hour blocks and Utah Power purchases energy from renewable wind power sources equal to the number of blocks purchased. In addition to participating in Blue Sky, Deer Valley has agreed to have PacifiCorp/Utah Power run a complete energy audit on all of its buildings, from lodges to maintenance facilities, to research where and how the Resort can save energy.
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