Vail Resorts’ participation in the Climate Collaborative Charter

Photo: TownLift // Michele Roepke.

DENVER, Colo. — With the announcement of the Climate Collaborative Charter, Vail Resorts unites with Alterra, Boyne, and POWDR to help combat climate change and commit to sustainability and advocacy around environmental issues. The release of the third annual EpicPromise Progress Report helps to spotlight some of the efforts that Vail Resorts has put forth in association with the Climate Charter.

Through the EpicPromise, Vail has a huge focus on their ‘Commitment to Zero.’ Committing to zero net emissions, zero waste to landfill, and zero operating impact on forests and natural habitats. The EpicPromise is a goal of a zero net operating footprint across all Vail resorts by the year 2030. Vail has reported that they have already diverted 50% of their waste (12.6 million pounds in 2020) and will be 93% powered by renewable electricity by 2023.

Senior Director of Sustainability at Vail Resorts, Kate Wilson said, “One company alone can’t solve the climate crisis – we know it will take bold environmental commitments and ongoing collaboration across industries to have the most impact on preserving and protecting the great outdoors,” with regard to the announcement of the Climate Collaborative Charter.

“This charter signifies the start of our collaborative partnership to collectively drive climate change mitigation,” said Wilson. “By coming together to share best practices, establish goals, and set strategies, we’ll accelerate progress across the industry. We’ll be sharing updates with one another, and plan to provide insights, learnings, and next steps through events like the annual NSAA Conference and at Mountain Towns 2030, once it convenes again in 2022. At Vail Resorts, we’ll continue to prioritize efforts to achieve our Commitment to Zero goal, and look forward to seeing what’s next from like-minded leaders across the industry.”

In the fall of 2020, Rocky Mountain Power announced the Elektron Solar Project in Utah. The solar project includes 6 customers; 2 ski resorts: Deer Valley and Park City Mountain; 3 local governments: Salt Lake City, Park City, and Summit County; and Utah Valley University. Each will be provided power from the new 80 MW Elektron Solar Project 60 miles west of Salt Lake City in Tooele County. Once completed in late 2022, Vail plans to purchase enough solar electricity to power Park City Mountain with 100% solar energy.