Ski Resort: Renewable energy: green

[nhskier1969]

Why don't ski resorts grow hemp on the trails in the summertime?

A hemp plant we eat up 3 to 4x the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere than a tree can.
Hemp is a renewable energy.
It would create more full time jobs at the ski resort
Once the hemp plant is harvested the resorts can use it to create their own biofuel for the groomers etc. Burns a lot cleaner than normal gas.
They can also use the plants to create materials which could then help with lower income housing. IE plywood

 

[Abominable]

Are you talking about marijuana? On a ski hill?

 

[nhskier1969]

Are you talking about marijuana? On a ski hill?

No, Hemp Plant

 

[Newpylong]

Why don't ski resorts grow hemp on the trails in the summertime?

A hemp plant we eat up 3 to 4x the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere than a tree can.
Hemp is a renewable energy.
It would create more full time jobs at the ski resort
Once the hemp plant is harvested the resorts can use it to create their own biofuel for the groomers etc. Burns a lot cleaner than normal gas.
They can also use the plants to create materials which could then help with lower income housing. IE plywood

I would think there far more economically viable locations to grow hemp than the side of a mountain.

 

[BodeMiller1]

From what I know: Killington does it right. Cold air into refers (NWR). Wildcat works with the mountain.

 

[BenedictGomez]

This is like the crunchiest post ever. Surprised they somehow left out composting though.

 

[slatham]

A more practical effort IMHO would be solar panels in (over) parking lots.

 

[machski]

A more practical effort IMHO would be solar panels in (over) parking lots.

Doppelmayr does have a solar panel option for the roofs of its detach terminals.

 

[BodeMiller1]

Doppelmayr does have a solar panel option for the roofs of its detach terminals.

There was a ski area in the Alps with a T-bar and it looked to have solar panels; not for the lift, but lights....

 

[2Planker]

Doppelmayr does have a solar panel option for the roofs of its detach terminals.

Saw this last year in Tenna, Switzerland

 

[BodeMiller1]

Saw this last year in Tenna, Switzerland

There it is.

1) The atmosphere is lighter up there, more power from the sun.
2) Neat

 

[urungus]

FWIW, Berkshire East claims to be “the only ski area in the world to generate 100% of our electricity from on-site renewable energy”

100% Renewable Energy - Berkshire East Mountain Resort

Berkshire East Mountain Resort is the four season adventure destination in New England. Located in the beautiful Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

berkshireeast.com

 

[machski]

FWIW, Berkshire East claims to be “the only ski area in the world to generate 100% of our electricity from on-site renewable energy”

100% Renewable Energy - Berkshire East Mountain Resort

Berkshire East Mountain Resort is the four season adventure destination in New England. Located in the beautiful Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

berkshireeast.com

It's nice when all that works. But didn't Jimminy lose a blade off it's wind turbine like 2 years ago (cracked and separated due to ice build up IIRC). Also, some resorts cannot due wind even if they want to. SR is one of those, wind turbines in Bethel/Newry region have been banned due to noise/sight concerns.

 

[drjeff]

FWIW, Berkshire East claims to be “the only ski area in the world to generate 100% of our electricity from on-site renewable energy”

100% Renewable Energy - Berkshire East Mountain Resort

Berkshire East Mountain Resort is the four season adventure destination in New England. Located in the beautiful Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

berkshireeast.com

When I read over their website piece on this, what wasn't very apparent to me, is do they NEVER have to draw electricty off the grid, even in times of heavy snowmaking ops? Or is it a situation where over the course of an entire year, the amount of renewable energy they generate and put the excess in their low demand times into the grid, is greater than what they draw from the grid if/when their own, onsite, renewable sources can't meet they demand that they need at certain times?

 

[urungus]

When I read over their website piece on this, what wasn't very apparent to me, is do they NEVER have to draw electricty off the grid, even in times of heavy snowmaking ops? Or is it a situation where over the course of an entire year, the amount of renewable energy they generate and put the excess in their low demand times into the grid, is greater than what they draw from the grid if/when their own, onsite, renewable sources can't meet they demand that they need at certain times?

I think the latter - over the course of the year, the amount they put back into the grid exceeds what they draw from it. Otherwise how would they keep the lights on for night skiing when there is no wind (and no light for the solar array) ? The article does mention that they have signed an agreement for a pumped storage system for such times, not sure when it is scheduled to come online.

 

[ss20]

In an industry where a good year financially is breaking even, why would you advocate for investment in "green" when the roi in that is also break even at best?

 

[BodeMiller1]

It's nice when all that works. But didn't Jimminy lose a blade off it's wind turbine like 2 years ago (cracked and separated due to ice build up IIRC). Also, some resorts cannot due wind even if they want to. SR is one of those, wind turbines in Bethel/Newry region have been banned due to noise/sight concerns.

When I first started going to Sunday River on Rt from N.H. there were always State Police on the N.H. side. They were waiting to escort the huge blades. Even one of the blades was 25 yards long. From a purely $ perspective the ban is not good. We all know there is wind in them their hills.

 

[BodeMiller1]

In an industry where a good year financially is breaking even, why would you advocate for investment in "green" when the roi in that is also break even at best?

Because solar does not work once you get up around the 45th. So, you can punt on green or do the best you can. If society made all energy decisions on fixed current costs we'd be still burning coal. Coal east of the Mississippi ended up in our lakes and ponds - not good.

Like many other issues where do you draw the line?

 

[Newpylong]

Yes, the excess energy produced by Berkshire East, Jiminy is sold back to the utility through net metering. So when they say they rely on 100% in house generated power they mean over the course of a specific time period, not in realtime. Someone would need to put in a serious energy storage system to be able to supply resort operations in realtime. A place the size of Jiminy Peak under snowmaking conditions will use like 3 mWh. That's a lot of power and not even a big ski area.

 

[Bosco DaSkia]

Why don't ski resorts grow hemp on the trails in the summertime?

A hemp plant we eat up 3 to 4x the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere than a tree can.
Hemp is a renewable energy.
It would create more full time jobs at the ski resort
Once the hemp plant is harvested the resorts can use it to create their own biofuel for the groomers etc. Burns a lot cleaner than normal gas.
They can also use the plants to create materials which could then help with lower income housing. IE plywood

that would just get in the way of the rice drying operations...

fact.