Responsibility for our homeland
Our home, the mountains, is important to us. Nature is a precious commodity, we want to use it responsibly and consciously.
As the largest ski and mountain sports area in the Montafon, we are aware of our responsibility and set ourselves new goals in dealing with our mountains and our homeland.
With the "Green Mountains" initiative we will:
- Positioning the mind and the attitude through sustainable ways of thinking and acting.
- Sensitize your own consciousness and that of our fellow human beings.
- Take on more responsibility for our homeland by taking small steps forward.
- Anchoring sustainable treatment of the environment in the company over the long term and increasingly.
We can do this together for our home!
What are we doing to make skiing more sustainable?
Skiing is not necessarily perceived as a sustainable sport. A distinction must be made here between winter sport itself and the infrastructure required for it. But of course, it doesn't work without them. With the Green Mountains Initiative, we try to act as responsibly as it is possible for a ski area and to make the framework conditions as natural as possible. In order to protect our homeland and the environment, we always come up with new campaigns. We are still at the beginning and of course there is still a lot to do! But together with your support we will definitely manage to make the Silvretta Montafon more and more sustainable in small steps. You have ideas or suggestions on how we can change, then write to us!
SNOW MANAGEMENT
Our slopes not only have to be perfectly groomed for all skiers, but also efficiently. That's why we attach great importance to optimal snow management. Our snow groomers are equipped with the latest technology. With millimeter-precise snow depth measurements, we can find out where and how much snow is and how to distribute it efficiently. Together with the technical snow-making team, the snowcat drivers distribute the snow according to demand and can thus guarantee winter sports enthusiasts optimal slope conditions.
Evaluation of telemetry data
We take a close look at the telemetry data from our snow groomers after they have been used at night. We check how much time and fuel was used on each individual slope. The aim is to optimize fuel consumption and the duration of use every day, thereby minimizing environmental pollution. With our partner and snowcat manufacturer Kässbohrer Austria, we regularly exchange information about technical possibilities and needs, such as the E-PistenBully, which we have already been able to test. Nevertheless, we want to continue to improve on this point as well.
Snowmaking
In order to make snowmaking in our ski area as efficient and sustainable as possible, we use our snow guns in a targeted and needs-oriented manner. For this reason, the energy-efficient lances from Demaclenko are used at suitable points, which have an energy consumption of just 0.15 kWh/m³ of snow. Technical snowmaking is and remains a major challenge and a not insignificant energy consumer in the ski area. Here, too, we learn something new every winter season and can thus always improve.
Purity law for snow
Contrary to popular belief, technical snow is also a purely natural product. Only water and air are required for production. Chemical additives in snow water are clearly rejected by the member companies of the Austrian Cable Car Association.
ENERGY
We have recognized the urgency of the energy transition and want to do our part. We are taking the first steps towards climate-friendly power supply and energy generation. In new projects, we focus on the use of renewable energy sources.
Biomass heating
Biomass heating is used to generate sustainable heating energy for the new Valisera valley station. Renewable raw materials, in the form of wood pellets, are used to generate energy.
Solar systems/photovoltaic systems
As is well known, the sun (almost) always shines in the Montafon. We have to use that! Two photovoltaic systems are used on the new Valisera Bahn – a smaller one at the mountain station and a large one (almost the entire roof area) at the valley station. We can use over 80% of the electricity that we generate with the two PV systems directly for rail operations. The rest is fed into the grid as green electricity. This stored energy should become part of the energy consumption and reduce CO2 emissions.
Green electricity
Since January 2020 we have been operating the cable cars in the Silbertal with green electricity from Vorarlberg. Enjoy the climate-friendly gondola ride up the Kristberg! You can find more information about “ZeroSilbertal” here!