Environmental Initiatives

Sugarbush Resort accepted the Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence at the Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility spring conference in Burlington. Click here to learn more.

Timbers Restaurant, Sugarbush Resort's signature restaurant, recently joined 1% For The Planet, the global collection of businesses pledging one-percent of revenues to environmental causes. Having made significant investments that contribute to the health of the local environment, Sugarbush is looking to expand upon these successes with its membership in 1% For the Planet.

The Vermont Business Environmental Partnership is a voluntary environmental assistance program that is open to any Vermont business that proactively incorporates sound environmental management practices into their operations.

Through the work of the Green Team, Sugarbush Resort is continuously looking for areas where we can improve our operations through use of renewable resources. Traditionally, snowmaking, grooming, snow removal/roads and parking lot maintenance would rely on 100% petrodiesel. At Sugarbush, in 2004/2005 we implemented the use of a "biodiesel blend" (20% biodiesel, 80% straight or "neat" petrodiesel) in ALL off road diesel machinery to offset our petrodiesel usage.

This year Sugarbush allocated over a million dollars toward improvements in our snowmaking capacities. An $800,000 investment was made in snowmaking upgrades, as well as a $500,000 purchase of groundbreaking new snowgun technology from Snow Logic. This addition of forty ultra-low energy snowguns, which require vastly less compressed air to operate, permits us to double our snowmaking production during warmer early-season temperatures, running more snowguns simultaneously at both Lincoln Peak and Mt. Ellen. Because these snowguns use significantly less electricity per gallon of water, they help us reduce our energy consumption without compromising either the quality or quantity of snow.

The MadBus provides free transportation between our two mountains and throughout the whole Mad River Valley. So park your car and go the green way, on the Mad Bus! Click here for a schedule.

Friends of the Mad River
E-mail: friends@madriver.com
Web Site: www.friendsofthemadriver.org

Mad River Watershed Conservation Partnership
E-mail: liza@vlt.org

Vermont Land Trust
Email: info@vlt.org
Website: www.vlt.org

Mad River Path Association
E-mail: path@madriver.com
Web Site: www.madriverpath.com

Mad River Valley Planning District
E-mail: mrvpd@madriver.com
Website: www.mrvpd.org

Green Mountain Club
E-mail: gmc@greenmountainclub.org
Website: www.greenmountainclub.org

Catamount Trail Association
E-mail: info@catamounttrail.org
Website: www.catamounttrail.org

The Climate Challenge is a voluntary program designed to recognize ski areas that are committed to developing greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories, setting goals for carbon reduction, implementing at least one on-site reduction strategy per year, and reporting success in reducing their overall carbon footprint.

Ski areas are increasingly being called upon to reach higher levels of environmental stewardship by government environmental agencies, nonprofit organizations, customers, ski area employees, and local and national ski area associations. Most companies are realizing that a proactive environmental management program is ultimately more cost-effective than reactive or status quo environmental management.

To meet this mission Sugarbush has created a team of employees, supervisors, and resort management to aid in the creation and implementation of a specific environmental management philosophy and system. The Green Team's Mission has been to seek and initiate environmental quality enhancements throughout our business operations by taking responsibility for preventing pollution and environmental degradation. This goal needs to be met without compromising our business objectives while improving resource efficiency, materials management and handling and enhancing environmental quality resort-wide.

Sugarbush supports the Sustainable Slopes principles defined by the National Ski Areas Association. For us, "Sustainability" means striking a healthy balance between the enjoyment of the land by people with environmental quality, and economic vitality in order to meet our current needs without jeopardizing the needs of the future. As human demand and consumption continues to increase and places a greater demand on our natural resources, our responsibility of successful stewardship becomes more critical.

Friends of the Forest
Sugarbush Resort is proud to be an active partner with the United State Forest Service, helping to preserve and protect the Green Mountain National Forest. For more information, please call 802-747-6700.