Photo by: Courtesy to the Ledger Dispatch

Energy retrofit projects, new efficient snowmaking equipment, increased use of biodiesel and purchasing of energy from renewable resources have all contributed to improved environmental grades for ski resorts across the west.

Ten of the 16 resorts that improved their Ski Area Environmental Scorecard grades this year demonstrated significant energy saving efforts, greening the overall industry's performance, according to the Ski Area Citizens' Coalition, which publishes the scorecard annually. This trend holds in California, where 12 of the 19 ski resorts evaluated improved their scores over last year, due in large part to expanded efforts to reduce energy consumption and to install green energy technology.

After posting failing grades for consecutive years, Kirkwood Ski Resort boosted its score to a respectable B. Representatives from Kirkwood could not be reached in time for comment.

"Resorts are walking the talk when it comes to reducing global warming gases," said Patricia Hickson, land use campaign associate for the Sierra Nevada Alliance. "We love seeing this green trend. It's an indicator the ski industry is taking leadership in the effort to reduce carbon emissions."

The Ski Area Environmental Scorecard, published consecutively since 2000 by the Ski Area Citizens' Coalition, is the only independent review that gives skiers and snowboarders a way to assess the environmental performance of their favorite resorts. Resorts are scored on a comprehensive suite of criteria such as protection of old growth forests, alpine wildlife and water resources, along with proactive steps such as carpool programs, recycling and using green energy. More detailed descriptions can be found on-line at www.skiareacitizens.com.

Despite ski resort improvement on the global warming front, expansions and real estate development continue to be major concerns for the coalition. Of the 83 resorts analyzed, 24 had scores that stayed the same or declined. Of these resorts, 15 are planning or have recently undertaken sizable terrain expansions or real estate development into sensitive areas.

"Some ski resorts are still major contributors to the loss of wildlife habitat, the pollution of waterways and the destruction of wetlands and riparian areas," said Ryan Demmy Bidwell, executive director of Colorado Wild. "Relatively speaking, resorts like Breckenridge and Kirkwood that continue to expand and develop can't compensate for bad land use practices by simply replacing light bulbs. Energy is an important component of improving performance, but it isn't the only factor conscientious skiers and riders should be concerned with."

Overall, California ski resorts improved by an average of 4 percentage points per resort, by far the greatest average improvement for ski resorts in the state since the scorecard was instituted in 2000. Increasing activity to reduce energy consumption was a significant factor on the improved grades.

Alpine Meadows and Squaw Valley continue to rank as the highest scoring ski resorts in California, though they are now flanked closely by Homewood Ski Resort, where improvements in erosion control helped boost the resort's grade from a C to a B. Only one California resort got a D, Northstar, and no resorts in California flunked this year.

"Faced with increased environmental concern from the skiing public and skyrocketing energy prices, ski areas have accelerated their efforts to become more energy efficient," said Hunter Sykes, research director of the Ski Area Citizens' Coalition. "It's encouraging to see improved scores and actual conservation for the environment."

Scorecard data is obtained from an annual survey, public records from government agencies and from the resorts themselves. Freedom of Information Act and Public Records Act requests are filed with appropriate land managers to identify ski area development projects and management plans each spring. Resorts are also asked to fill out surveys and regarding their on-mountain environmental programs. All source documents can be viewed on the Web site, where skiers and snowboarders can also send e-mails to resorts through the Web site, thanking resorts for their environmental stewardship or encouraging them to improve their environmental policies and management.