SAM Coverage
Allen Best
-
2020 Elections Bring Change to Resorts
The Biden Administration will act quickly to focus on the environment and bring greater predictability back to Washington. The state and national elections…
-
Climate Goals
Why has 2030 become the focal point for climate change, and what is the necessary response? Coronavirus and racial equality have mesmerized public attention…
-
Air Travel and Climate Change
The implications of air travel. When Sun Valley was born in 1936 as the first true destination ski resort in the United States, its…
-
Lobbying for Change on Climate
A new partnership aims to alter the conversation in Washington. Chris Steinkamp detected something new when he flew to Washington D.C. in May…
-
Doing Well by Doing Right
Berkshire East Mountain Resort, Mass., may become the first ski area in North America, and perhaps the world, to be powered 100 percent by…
-
Aiming for 100-Percent Renewables
While Vail Resorts buys big wind in Nebraska, Jim MacInnes sets his sights on a bigger goal. By any measure, the Vail Resorts power…
-
Battery-Powered?
Squaw Valley aims to boldly go where no other resort has: a backup, battery-powered microgrid. Several months ago, Squaw Valley declared an ambitious goal:…
-
Sunny Side Up
Wolf Creek moves toward becoming the nation’s first solar-powered ski area. When Davey Pitcher procures potatoes for the fries and beef for the burgers…
-
Doing Business Sustainably
Taos Ski Valley has found multiple benefits in the triple bottom line. Taos Ski Valley is 20 miles and 2,300 feet above its namesake,…
-
Doing Well by Doing Right
A clever coupon system makes it a snap for charities and resorts to profit from donation requests. It’s a blizzard that can roar in…
-
Effort In = Costs Out
A resort-wide focus on cutting energy costs led to big savings at Crested Butte. Even as prices of electricity, natural gas, and diesel have…
-
Tree Wells Are Trouble
With more skiers and riders heading off-piste, tree-well education can save lives. On a powder day, there are no friends. That saying is probably…
-
Adapting to Climate Change
New data on climate change paints a potentially scary picture for ski areas. The rains that drenched Los Angeles just before Christmas were nearly…
-
The Energy Squeeze
Areas that seek ways to cut energy costs are finding them almost everywhere they look. When Arapahoe Basin set a goal of shaving its…
-
A Slightly Skeptical Look at Global Warming
What is hype and what is real when it comes to global warming? Several years ago a college in Colorado issued a report that…
-
A Green Retrofit
Updating an existing building with energy-efficient measures is not as hard, or as costly, as you might think. The building that houses administrative functions…
-
Tower of Power
Jiminy Peak’s wind turbine has been up and running for a full season now. Was the payoff worth it? The 1.5-megawatt wind turbine at…
-
Wind Power: Cloudy Forecast
Fresh criticism of renewable energy certificates shows that when it comes to acting green, few things are black and white. Some 55 ski area…