How green is our valley? Whistler's focus on sustainability
In 2005, Whistler was declared one of the most liveable communities in the world and the best in the world in planning for the future at the International Awards for Liveable Communities in La Coruna, Spain. The LivCom awards, endorsed by the United Nations Environmental Program, identified the community’s groundbreaking vision and sustainability plan, Whistler 2020 – Moving Toward a Sustainable Future, as an international, best practice planning model that can be used by any sized community in the world. This legacy of environmental stewardship continues with Whistler’s contribution to sustainability as one of the central pillars of the 2010 Winter Games. As one of the many significant lasting legacies of the Games, improved environmental policies and practices developed in Whistler will, in turn, lead to increased environmental awareness around the world.
Renewable power project at Whistler Blackcomb offsets mountain's annual energy consumption
Whistler Blackcomb continues to prove that it is not only one of the world's leading ski resorts but a proven leader in environmental sustainability. The latest project by Whistler Blackcomb will produce enough renewable energy to power the entire resort. The Fitzsimmons Creek Hydro Project, located within Whistler Blackcomb's operating area, will produce 33.5 gigawatt hours of hydro electricity per year - the equivalent of powering the ski resort's winter and summer operations including 38 lifts, 17 restaurants, 269 snowguns and countless other buildings and services. The Fitzsimmons Creek area provides the ultimate conditions for a successful small hydro electric project. The creek has an abundance of water, the necessary vertical drop, it is not a major fish-bearing stream, nor is the creek used recreationally within the project area. Keeping with the green theme, electricity lines will be buried underground in previously disturbed areas and much of the area that needs to be developed runs along already existing access roads.
Whistler Blackcomb named one of Canada's greenest employers
Whistler Blackcomb has been named by Maclean's Magazine as one of Canada's Greenest Employers for 2009, with accolades given for employee engagement, the Fitzsimmons Creek renewable power project, community stewardship, and reducing waste and energy consumption. This nomination recognizes the company's 3,800 employees for their dedication and contribution to sustainability in Whistler. Whistler Blackcomb has set the benchmark for environmental initiatives in the ski and mountain resort industry. Its environmental management strategy began in 1992 and has evolved into a core pillar of the company's goals and objectives. To date Whistler Blackcomb has been recognized 17 times in the last 10 years by a variety of organizations for efforts in working towards sustainability.
Whistler Centre for Sustainability - sharing our learnings with the world
The Whistler Centre for Sustainability (WCS) is a new non-profit organization created from the Whistler2020 vision to accelerate the journey toward a sustainable future within Whistler and beyond. Focusing on sustainability practices for communities and the tourism sector, the WCS takes the expertise and leadership from Whistler's experience, combined with global best practices, to deliver consulting services and learning opportunities for interested local governments and the tourism industry around the world. www.whistlercentre.ca
Whistler Composting Facility – a rotten business
It might look like a lot of garbage but Whistler's new composting facility is turning heads. It's actually one of Whistler's most sustainable success stories. The new Whistler Composting facility is literally turning garbage into gold or at least highly fertile, nutrient rich top grade compost. It adds up to the sweet smell of success for environmentally conscious Whistler. The compost facility helps the community move toward its goal of "zero waste." www.whistler.ca
Warm beds - visitor accommodations, the Whistler way
"Warm beds" may sound like a steamy reference to Whistler's famed singles scene but the term actually refers to the most radical concept in Whistler's design - and a key component of its success. Before Whistler began booming, some other popular mountain resorts were grappling with a new kind of problem , "cold beds", that resulted when many lodging units were owned by second homeowners who used them only a few weeks per year and otherwise left them vacant. The resort might have loads of guest beds, but if no one was sleeping in those beds then business owners wouldn't have the flow of customers they needed to sustain their businesses, provide steady jobs and keep the community ticking along. Whistler's response was to create innovative real estate covenants that require a high percentage of property owners in the village core to keep their units in the rental pool, keeping beds "warm" instead of "cold".
Whistler Bungee knows the importance of being green
Whistler Bungee has been running on renewable energy for almost four years now. Located in the beautiful outdoors along the breathtaking Cheakamus river canyon (just south of Whistler Village) it's a natural fit for the company to be self sufficient in the power department. All electricity needs are drawn from the sun and the wind via two 115W solar panels and a 400W wind turbine with an array of eight 6V batteries to back it up. Staff members are also dedicated to maintaining their pristine alpine office and have a recycling system or all recyclable products both on the bridge and in the office. Whistler Bungee constantly strives to find new ways to reduce their environmental impact through initiatives such as maintaining a paper-free membership database and sharing transportation to the site each day. All of these initiatives are designed to take care of Whistler Bungee's most precious legacy - Whistler's truly spectacular environment. www.whistlerbungee.com
Green Machines are more than a passing fad
Both the Municipality and Whistler Blackcomb have tested and integrated various "green" and sustainable fuel technologies in their fleets of vehicles. The municipal fleet now includes battery electric, hybrid electric, propane and biodiesel vehicles. Among its other green machines, Whistler Blackcomb's new snow-grooming fleet, which grooms more than 1,200 acres per night during winter, adheres to emissions standard CK SP Euromot 2 (among the strictest emissions standards in the world). These new snow-grooming machines use 18 per cent less fuel and produce fewer emissions than snowcats Whistler Blackcomb used ten years ago. Other businesses within Whistler have also begun adopting environmentally friendly modes of transportation. The Westin Resort and Spa is now using a hybrid vehicle and pedi cabs to shuttle guests in and around the Village.
Whistler Public Library - a novel approach to building green
Whistler's library is more than just books, it's a unique timber framed structure built to blend into its natural surroundings. The effort has not gone unnoticed. Gold is the level the Whistler Public Library earned through LEED certification. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) recognizes environmental innovation including the building's exceptional passive solar design principles, a geothermal heating and cooling system, high efficiency baseboard heaters, and compact fluorescent light bulbs. The library may blend into its natural surroundings but its design is award winning. www.whistlerlibrary.ca
I dream of Jeanie - the Fairmont Chateau Whistler gets Bear Smart
The Fairmont Chateau Whistler is partnering with Whistler's Get Bear Smart Society for a three-year Eco-Innovations Signature Project. The key goals of this relationship are to allow The Fairmont Chateau Whistler to support community awareness campaigns and fundraising endeavors, foster community stewardship and promote positive environmental change and protection in order to create and sustain a coexistence with local bears. Additionally, Fairmont Chateau Whistler colleagues have raised money and adopted a bear named Jeanie, who is an infamous "Whistler local" of 20 years. Jeanie and her cubs are well-known to Fairmont staff, as they reside near Colleague Housing. Staff have committed to planting Mountain Ash trees to provide mountainside-feeding areas for the bears, keeping them out of the village and away from garbage, and have also developed on-going educational programs for colleagues. www.fairmont.com/whistler
The Four Seasons Whistler raises the roof in sustainability
In a busy hotel, it's not uncommon to reconfigure spaces to ensure every inch is utilized. But at Four Seasons Whistler, Executive Chef Scott Thomas Dolbee took such resourcefulness to a new level...the second level of the Resort to be exact. Wanting to bring fresh ingredients closer to the kitchen, Dolbee had a 2,700 sq. ft. garden planted on the roof above the main ballroom. Accessible only through a guest room, the garden includes 30 varieties of produce and herbs - from carrots and tomatoes to purple dragon tongue beans - all maintained by the Resort's team of chefs. In addition to ensuring the ingredients served in Fifty-Two 80 Bistro are the freshest available, the roof-top garden has inspired even more creativity when it comes to how spaces are used in the hotel. To wit, a greenhouse to extend Dolbee's growing season is in the works for 2010 in - fittingly - the Resort's always-warm Boiler Room. www.fourseasons.com/whistler