Snow making with Reclaimed Water - Effluent

[dlague]

This was brought up in the Sugarbush Thread and I thought this might be interesting to discuss. What are your feelings about it? Is it a good idea? Is waste water effluent going to create a worsening snow melt effluent?

True story sort-of:

''Killington: Where the Affluent Meet the Effluent."
http://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/06/us/vermont-dispute-grows-over-effluent-for-ski-snowmaking.html

There are probably more!

 

[dlague]

Not the only place it was being considered!

Arizona Snowbowl

http://www.hcn.org/blogs/goat/hopi-lawsuit-against-arizona-snowbowl-wastewater-snow-proceeds

Bear Creek

https://www.rwlwater.com/ski-resort-set-to-make-snow-from-treated-wastewater/

 

[dlague]

You never know you too may be skiing on reclaimed sewage water!

http://reclaimedwater.net/data/files/195.pdf

 

[andrec10]

Don't eat that yellow snow!

 

[Jully]

Don't eat that yellow snow!

Indeed!

In seriousness though, I'm not sure about back east, but out west with increasingly worsening water problems I have no issues with it assuming it is properly treated. Tertiary WW treatment is already used and the ability to make effluent drinkable is already well in place. Any issues and concerns are strictly philosophical unless you're worried resorts will skirt the regulations...

 

[sugarbushskier]

If I can slide on it, I have no issues.....

 

[prsboogie]

Indeed!

In seriousness though, I'm not sure about back east, but out west with increasingly worsening water problems I have no issues with it assuming it is properly treated. Tertiary WW treatment is already used and the ability to make effluent drinkable is already well in place. Any issues and concerns are strictly philosophical unless you're worried resorts will skirt the regulations...

I'm quite sure in Regulation Nation there will be no skirting of rules


Sent from my iPhone using AlpineZone

 

[cdskier]

Indeed!

In seriousness though, I'm not sure about back east, but out west with increasingly worsening water problems I have no issues with it assuming it is properly treated. Tertiary WW treatment is already used and the ability to make effluent drinkable is already well in place. Any issues and concerns are strictly philosophical unless you're worried resorts will skirt the regulations...

Agreed! VTers should be all in favor of this...they could market it as "All natural and organic" snow!

 

[andrec10]

Poo-ski....

 

[tumbler]

From someone that has made a lot of snow many years ago, the water that comes out of the snowmaking pipes without any effluent is disgusting! I have seen all the colors of the rainbow come out of hydrants and some funky smells too.

 

[drjeff]

From someone that has made a lot of snow many years ago, the water that comes out of the snowmaking pipes without any effluent is disgusting! I have seen all the colors of the rainbow come out of hydrants and some funky smells too.

While I haven't personally made snow myself, I sure have seen a bunch of funky colors, and when a pond gets a bit low, some funky smells when you go buy it!

+1 on this post!!

 

[SIKSKIER]

IIRC I thought many moons ago Killington had used wastewater.I sure remember the discussion about it where ever it was used.

 

[SIKSKIER]

Unless I'm confusing it with the "bacteria" that was used?If that's what it was.

 

[Puck it]

Unless I'm confusing it with the "bacteria" that was used?If that's what it was.

You are thinking of snowmax

http://www.snomax.com/product.html

 

[Whitey]

I think this was commonplace all over the northeast last season. Almost everywhere I skied last year I thought "this snow is really sh!tty". . .

 

[WoodCore]

IIRC I thought many moons ago Killington had used wastewater.I sure remember the discussion about it where ever it was used.

There were bumper stickers......"Killington.....where the affluent meets the effluent."

 

[raisingarizona]

From someone that has made a lot of snow many years ago, the water that comes out of the snowmaking pipes without any effluent is disgusting! I have seen all the colors of the rainbow come out of hydrants and some funky smells too.

It can have a funky smell to it. Just today we hiked up above midway right into a snow making guns spray on Upper ridge and it smelled weird. Unfortunately, the use of reclaimed waste water is becoming more of a necessity in todays world with climate change and the water issues. Many city parks, golf courses and many other forms of infrastructure are using it now, especially here in the drought ridden south west. We can't have a successful ski area here without it. Heck, we get protesters to the Snowbowl snowmaking often here on the grass in front of the city building that is actually watered with the treated water! That cracks me up.

I do wonder though if studies were done here comparing the snow from the sky to the reclaimed waste water which one would be worse. Our storm clouds often come across the Pacific (possibly Fukushima born) and then pass over the L.A. So Cal areas, I sort of doubt that that snow is really very clean either.

I will say this, reclaimed waste water does kill ponderosa trees, we see that around here from the landscaping. Our ski area is higher than the Pondi population but I imagine that it might have the same effect on the fir, spruce and aspen but only time will tell.

 

[Jully]

I do wonder though if studies were done here comparing the snow from the sky to the reclaimed waste water which one would be worse. Our storm clouds often come across the Pacific (possibly Fukushima born) and then pass over the L.A. So Cal areas, I sort of doubt that that snow is really very clean either.

That's a really good point. Just because it is coming from the clouds doesn't mean its clean! Similar things happened in NE, though possibly not as bad as what you're describing prior to the 1990s because of acid rain/snow.