Creative energy plan turns resort operator's snowmelt into energy
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| Aspen Skiing Company is building a small hydro generator on Snowmass Mountain. The snowmaking system will channel the snowmelt runoff through the unit producing up to 60 kW of renewable energy. (Photo courtesy of Aspen Skiing Company.) |
Aspen Skiing Company is taking its groundbreaking commitment to sustainable development to the next level by harnessing snowmelt to produce hydropower.
Each year, when the snow on the ski runs and in the watershed melts, the runoff rushes down to the Roaring Fork River through the pipes of the Aspen, Colo., resort's snowmaking system. That flow of water represents what Auden Schendler, the company's director of environmental affairs, called, "the most exciting environmental opportunity we've ever had."
System saves on cost by using existing pipe network
For a resort that has set the standard for responsible environmental policy, that is saying quite a bit. "This project could demonstrate to the entire ski industry that snowmaking systems offer an enormous opportunity for hydropower," Schendler declared.
The snowmelt generator is ASC's first foray into energy production. "I had been looking at wind power, but the mountain terrain makes it difficult to site turbines—or PV panels," said Schendler. "Then our mountain manager at Snowmass pointed out that we had plenty of running water. The project took off from there."
Construction on the small hydro unit began in the spring and is expected to be completed by September, several weeks before the first snowmaking activity. The pipe system that will channel the snowmelt is already in place. "This is the beauty of what we're trying to do," Schendler explained.
"The main expense for any hydrosystem is the 'penstock,' the pipe that takes water from up high to down low at pressure. All ski resorts with snowmaking systems have prebuilt penstocks."
The water will spin a 60-kW generator, producing enough electricity to power about 35 homes.
Co-op supports local renewable energy development
ASC plans to work out an agreement to sell the output of its generator to Holy Cross Energy. The resort could use the hydropower for its own needs but would prefer instead to sell it to the Glenwood Springs-based electric cooperative.
"It works out about the same either way, but selling the generation would show a clear-cut return on our investment," Schendler noted. "That makes a better financial case for businesses looking for a model."
Schendler estimates that the system will produce $12,000 annually in revenue, paying back the company's $62,000 investment in about 5 years. Under certain circumstances, Holy Cross's policy of buying renewable energy from local producers at 6.5 cents per kWh — nearly twice what the utility pays for power from coal-fired plants — would improve the economics of the project.
"Holy Cross is not just one of the most environmentally progressive utilities in the country," said Schendler, "they actively help make renewable energy projects like this happen. In fact, this winter, with the assistance of Holy Cross and the Community Office for Resource Efficiency, ASC powered the Aspen Mountain Gondola with wind power."
The system's output could be added to the locally produced green power Holy Cross offers its members under the Local Renewable Energy Pool program highlighted in the April 2003 issue of Energy Services Bulletin. "ASC is one of our best customers and an outstanding corporate citizen," said Dave Church of Holy Cross's marketing department. "We are looking forward to helping them succeed with this project."
Resort's experience benefits any business interested in energy efficiency
The hydro project is only the latest in a long line of initiatives and policies ASC has undertaken to minimize the impact of doing business on the environment that supports its industry. A three-time recipient of the Golden Eagle Award for Overall Environmental Excellence in the Ski Industry, the resort was the first in the industry to announce a climate protection policy. Its programs include the employee-founded Environment Foundation, green development, waste management, pollution prevention, on-mountain education, transportation and climate protection.
Better than awards, however, is the recognition those initiatives have gained from companies inside the ski industry and out. "We field lots of questions about our projects, from all kinds of businesses," Schendler said.
Aspen Skiing Company is proving that it is possible to run a profitable business that does not damage — and hopefully enhances — the natural world. That wildly complex feat has made it as much of a resource as the renewable energy it will be producing.