Distinctly Montana Magazine

SKI AREA CITIZENS' COALITION—RATED MONTANA SKI HILLS HABITAT GRADE Moonlight Basin Bridger Bowl Big Sky Resort Whitefish Mountain Resort Red Lodge Resort Lost Trail Ski Area Montana Snowbowl 76.30% 73.50% 69.10% 64.50% 62.60% 62.30% 61.70% PROTECTION B B B B B A A PROTECTING WATERSHEDS A A A B B B B ADDRESSING GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE A A B C C D F ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES AND PRACTICES A A C D F F F Here's a rundown of what some ski resorts in Montana are doing. RED LODGE RESORT Red Lodge Resort, near Red Lodge, MT, is a member of the YBP and is completing the UnCommon Sense program, which promotes waste-stream management, responsible purchasing and energy, water and transporta- tion efficiency, as well as exploring business responses to climate change. www.redlodgemountain.com BRIDGER BOWL Bridger is Montana's only community-owned, nonprofit ski area, and is found in the Bridger Range north of Boze- man. Bridger is actively participating in NSAA's "Keep Winter Cool" program. They have convenient carpool parking lots at the ski area and at the Gallatin County Fair Grounds, and offer discounted lift tickets for carpools of three or more on certain holidays as well as a free employee shuttle bus. There's also a free skier bus on weekends, and a kids' bus on weekends and holidays. Bridger recycles cardboard, glass, aluminum, and plas- tic—and all lubricant oils, lift grease, fryer fats, large steel, aluminum, wire, paper and magazines. They use 100% re- cycled paper for post cards, business cards, and brochures. Bridger will be purchasing green tags for energy gener- ated through zero emission heat exhaust captured from natural gas pump turbines in Basin Electric Cooperative's North Dakota pipeline. The three lodges at Bridger em- phasize natural lighting and all are equipped with energy- efficient light bulbs. The food service department will soon be using bamboo/ sugarcane based plate products in the cafeterias. A 1976 double chair lift from Snowbird was used for the new Schlasman chairlift. Bridger completed YBP's UnCom- mon Sense program in 2009. www.Bridgerbowl.com MOONLIGHT BASIN Moonlight Basin is located in Big Sky on the north slope of Lone Mountain. Over half of Moonlight Basin's original 25,000 acres of private land are protected in con- servation easements. Within the developed ski area, some wildlife corridors have been preserved. Moonlight Basin offsets the energy required by ski lifts with renewable energy credits from NorthWestern Energy. Free public transportation between Bozeman and Moon- light Basin is offered by Skyline, eliminating thousands of car trips through environmentally-sensitive Gallatin Canyon and saving thousands of tons of CO2 emissions. Recycling is emphasized at Moonlight, with most of the waste from their offices recycled, and convenient recycling bins available at the lodge for plastic, paper, cardboard and aluminum. Recycled building materials at Moonlight include the Headwaters lift and some of the terrain parks features, such as old propane tanks from a landfill. Moonlight also is a graduate of YBP's UnCommon Sense Program. Awards granted to Moonlight Basin include MSU Extension Service's EcoStar Award and the NSAA's Silver Eagle for Fish and Wildlife Habitat Protection and for Visual Impact. www.moonlightbasin.com BIG SKY RESORT Lone Mountain provides the spectacular centerpiece of Big Sky, located adjacent to Moonlight Basin. This is Mon- tana's biggest ski area and is heavily developed. Combined with Moonlight, most of the perimeter of Lone Mountain is developed for downhill skiing. Big Sky has boosted energy efficiency at Shoshone Condos and the Mountain Mall by replacing windows and doors. They have improved insulation and installed recy- cling bins in employee housing, and encouraged employ- ees to use best practices with heating, lights and computer usage. Both the Summit Hotel and Shoshone have in- stalled energy conservation systems called Entergize that automatically turn down thermostats and turn off lights when guests leave their room. The Village Center, Big Sky's newest building installed an energy saving system called Tridium that can remotely manage energy use. Big Sky was the first major resort to use cleaner 4 stroke snowmobiles. Big Sky offers all of its used grease from kitchen operations to be used for creation of biodiesel. Their vehicle maintenance shop is heated with used oil from their vehicles. Seven out of eight of Big Sky's food operations offer reusable utensils. The last facility, the Lone Peak Café is due for remodel starting Spring 2012 to handle non-disposable operations. The resort has a recy- cling program for aluminum, plastic, paper and cardboard. www.distinctlymontana.com 29

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