SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., May 4, 2015—SKI Magazine has honored Mt. Hood Meadows with the 2015 Golden Eagle Award for Environmental Excellence.
The Golden Eagle Awards, overseen in a partnership between SKI and the National Ski Areas Association, are the ski industry’s most prestigious honor for recognizing resort environmental programs and projects.
Mt. Hood Meadows in Oregon took the top environmental honors in the medium-sized ski area category for its carbon emission reduction results. As a founding member of the industry’s “Climate Challenge,” the ski area has taken significant steps over the past four years to meet its goal of achieving a 6 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 using a 2011 baseline. Meadows' focus on reduced electrical consumption, fuel consumption, and waste sent to the landfill have produced exemplary results, including a power use reduction of 76,035 kWh and a waste disposal reduction of 141,277 lbs. Some of the ski area’s most innovative initiatives include its table-to-farm composting program, which diverts guest plate and kitchen food waste to a local commercial compost facility that sells the compost to local farms and retail consumers, and its snow harvesting program, which collects snow from base area parking lots to spread on the slopes to reduce the need for snowmaking.
Video: Environmental Sustainability Manager Heidi Logosz talks about our sustainability programs.
Meadows has been recognized as an industry leader having received two L.E.E.D. awards (a Silver for the Mountain Patrol Headquarters building and a Gold for the Providence Mountain Emergency Services building). The resort had previously received three Silver Eagle awards for it’s environmental initiatives, but this is the first Golden Eagle the company has received. Meadows has also been named one of Oregon's best 100 green companies to work for the past three years.
For more information about Mt. Hood Meadows’ environmental initiatives, visit our environmental page.
SKI Magazine also honored Winter Park Resort, Colo. (large ski area), and Shawnee Peak Ski Area, Maine (small ski area) with the 2015 Golden Eagle Awards for Environmental Excellence. Additionally, SKI named Brent Giles of Powdr Corp. as this year’s “Hero of Sustainability” honoree for 2015.
About the GEAs
Established in 1993, the Golden Eagle Awards for Environmental Excellence recognize the environmental achievements of ski areas. The awards are sponsored by SKI Magazine. Judges for this year’s awards include: Andy Hawk and Greg Ditrinco, SKI Magazine; Tiffany Beal, International Mountain Bicycling Association; Judy Dorsey, Brendle Group; Ryan Mayo, CLIF Bar & Company; Geraldine Link, NSAA; Don Dressler, USDA–Forest Service; and Kirk Mills, Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE).
About SKI
SKI Magazine (www.skimag.com), located in Boulder, Colo., is the world’s oldest and largest ski publication. It is part of Active Interest Media’s Mountain Group, which also includes Skiing, Warren Miller Entertainment and NASTAR. AIM (www.aimmedia.com) is a leading publisher of enthusiast publications across all platforms, and a producer of consumer shows. The company’s five publishing groups—the Equine Network, the Home Buyer Group, the Healthy Living Group, the Marine Group and the Outdoor Group—reach more than 20 million readers in 85 countries around the world. AIM’s titles include Backpacker, Yoga Journal, Vegetarian Times, SAIL, Log Home Living, and Old House Journal. AIM was formed by Wind Point Partners, a private equity investment firm with offices in Chicago and Southfield, Mich., in partnership with CEO Efrem “Skip” Zimbalist III in October 2003.
About NSAA
The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA), headquartered in Lakewood, Colo., is the trade association for ski area owners and operators. Formed in 1962, NSAA today represents 332 alpine resorts that account for more than 90 percent of the skier/snowboarder visits nationwide. Additionally, it has more than 400 supplier members who provide equipment, goods, and services to the mountain resort industry.
For further information on the Golden Eagle Awards or to learn more about environmental programs at ski resorts nationwide, visit www.nsaa.org.