Environment

Alternative Energy – Solar Power

Harnessing the resort’s 300 days of sunshine, the environmental team installed 42 200-watt solar panels on the roof of Bailey's restaurant at Adventure Ridge over the summer, creating an 8.4 kilowatt system that will produce enough energy to power the entire building and the excess electricity will light other facilities at Eagle's Nest. This project is the latest among a number of ongoing initiatives, which are intended to reduce and/or offset energy use at the resort.

Recycling

Vail has the largest ski area recycling program in the world, recycling or reusing more than 70 percent of the material on the mountain including cardboard, aluminum, glass and even chairlifts and mechanical parts.

Water Efficiency

Did you know that the drinking water on Vail Mountain is from springs located on the mountain? Our Mountain Services crew has taken a strong stance on water conservation. They have either replaced or retrofit old fixtures (from faucets to toilets to urinals) to more efficient "low" flow fixtures. This has led to a 27% reduction in drinking water usage on Vail Mountain in four years.

Commitment to Nature

As stewards of our public lands, the resort also implements springtime terrain closures in the Back Bowls for elk calving. And while tough to spot, Vail installed bat boxes around the mountain, encouraging insectivores to feast on mosquitoes in a natural means. Vail’s free "bat housing" is full of small, winged residents and some use them as a second “vacation home”. These efforts, along with company-wide initiatives such as Appetite for Life, Use Less, Do More, demonstrate a commitment to continuing to act good stewards of the environment.

Pine Beetles

The mountain pine beetle is affecting the western region of the United States, including Colorado. The beetle is part of nature's eco-cycle, and we typically see its effects every 20 to 30 years. Pine beetles attack older lodgepole pines, which are prevalent in the White River National Forest and other parts of Colorado, killing the trees and turning them brown. Forest management practices are not able to prevent this act of nature. This natural cycle will provide a new and different regenerated forest in the future.

Vail Resorts made the commitment to serve natural, hormone-free meats and poultry and organic dairy products at all of our on-mountain restaurants at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly in November for the 2007-2008 ski season. Now, the Company is expanding the program with a pledge to serve 100 percent Certified Organic Starbucks coffee and Fair-Trade blend for espresso and to eliminate the use of all artificial Trans Fat in the preparation of food at all of Vail Resorts' 90 on-mountain and off-mountain dining facilities at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Heavenly, eight RockResort properties and at the Company’s other restaurants beginning with the 2008-2009 ski season.

Serving more than 2.5 million lunches through the Appetite for Life program last season, Vail Resorts became the largest restaurant operator in North America to exclusively serve natural meats and organic dairy products at all its on-mountain restaurants at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly. Shortly thereafter, the Company’s lodging division adopted the Appetite for Life program and expanded it by announcing a sustainable cuisine program in its hospitality and lodging operations, with a specific focus at its RockResorts dining establishments, that incorporated sustainable seafood and locally grown ingredients.

The Company currently serves hormone-free natural beef patties, chicken breasts, breaded chicken breasts, chicken nuggets, beef franks, bacon, roast beef, oven-roasted turkey breast, ground beef, chicken wings, honey maple ham, smoked turkey breast, pork stew, beef brisket and Black Forest ham and organic butter, a variety of organic milk offerings, soy milk, cottage cheese, several flavors of creams, plain and flavored yogurts, heavy whipping cream, half and half and whipped cream provided by Horizon Organic.

At our RockResort properties and our high-end mountain dining outlets, Vail Resorts will offer fish and seafood from sustainably managed sources and use the following resources to guide our selections: Monterey Bay Aquarium, Seafood Choices Alliances and the Marine Stewardship Council.