Wildlife Preservation

The Lecht 2090 lies within in the Cairngorms national park and is adjacent to the Cairngorm Special Area of conservation (SAC). While is doesn’t lie within the SAC, the resort still follows rules pertaining to the national park and the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004. 

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The Resort is open to winter activities from December until April, corresponding to the winter season and allowing for the natural seasons not to be disrupted. The rest of the year, the resort is used for mountain biking. 

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Water Usage

There is an abundance in freshwater in Scotland due to the lakes and rainfall. The Lecht 2090 operates a Snowfactory to ensure the ski season can start on time, as well as 4 snow cannons and a specialised snow groomer. The snow cannons are relatively new and the latest technology ensuring greater efficiency. Electrical needs are therefore reduced and the output is far greater compared to the replaced 20 year old snow cannons.  The Lecht 2090 has also put on ski events in June which would require more water than in the winter months due to higher temperatures and less initial snow. 

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Green Transport

There is currently no public transport available to and from the Lecht 2090. The closest big town to the resort is Aviemore, which is 35 miles away. 

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There are also currently no EV charge stations at the site, but funds have been secured to build them in the future. They will be powered by the 150kW wind turbine which also feeds the Snowfactory. 

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Source of Energy

Scotland currently produces most of its electricity from renewable energy, due to its increased investment to become greener. The Government estimated that on 2020, 56% of electricity was generated from renewables. 13% are still from fossil fuels, while 30% are nuclear. 

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The Lecht 2090 has a 150kW wind Turbine that is used to power the Snowfactory exclusively. The artificial snow created therefore does not increase the emission of the resort. 

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Future Planning

The Lecht 2090 is introducing 2 greener solutions. The EV charging stations will allow more electric cars to charge at the resort, further incentivising the use of Electric cars. They have also gained funding to build 2 water bottle refilling station, to help decrease single use plastics and encourage the use of refillable and greener bottles. 

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Wildlife Preservation

The Nevis Range Ski Resort is adjacent to a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), which includes most of the mountain the Resort is located on (Aonach Mor)

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The Resort opens seasonally and while summer activities are still active, the area isn’t hurt by artificial snow in the off season.

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Water Usage

Freshwater is abundant in Scotland due to the lakes and rainfall. Nevis Range has 3 snow making machines, producing around 155 tons of flake ice per day. While more efficient than conventional snow guns, it takes a lot of water to create the snow.

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Green Transport

Nevis Range Mountain Experience and the Town of Fort Williams are easily accessible by public transport. Fort William is connected directly by train to the hub of Glasgow. The 512 Shiel (N41) bus goes from the Fort Williams city centre to the Nevis Range Ski Area and information on times is available at the bus stop or the tourist information on the high street.

EV charge stations are available at the Nevis Range parking lot. There are 4 charging devise, comprising a total of 8 connectors. This station is run by the ChargePlace Scotland Network.

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Source of Energy

With Scotland’s push to use more renewables, it currently produces most of its electricity from renewable energy. The Government estimated that on 2020, 56% of electricity was generated from renewables. 13% are still from fossil fuels, while 30% are nuclear.

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The Nevis Range also buys hydroelectric energy from a nearby Hydroelectric plant owned by Equitix and run by Green Highlands Renewables. The green energy powers the gondola, base station and EV charge points, while the rest still makes use of the national.

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Future Planning

Planned building construction is currently underway until November 2022, where a new hotel, restaurant, bike shop and more is being built. The Nevis Range experience have a Masterplan, detailing their values and how they wish to run their business and its development. Like Scotland as a whole, it shows dedication to net zero, and works with companies with similar ideologies such as BHC, striving to be SteelZero (Zero emission production).

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Additional Information

The Café at Nevis Range has net zero carbon emissions and does not use plastic for fresh beverages and food.

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Wildlife Preservation

The region in and around the Glenshee Ski Centre is full of a diversity for plants and birds. The Ski Centre lies within the Nature reserve at Caenlochan. The Ski Centre is also within Sites of Scientific Interest and due to European legislation a Special Protection Area for birds and a Special Area of Conservation for vegetation have been introduced which incorporate part of the Ski Centre. They also claim that no new construction or snow making harms the animals or ecosystem. 

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The Ski Centre is open between December and March, only making extra snow during these colder months and for special events, reducing impact on the natural cycle of plants and animals. 

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Green Transport

There is no public transport to Glenshee Ski Centre. Without a car the journey has to be done partially by taxi. A train can be taken from Edinburgh to Pitlochry and then a 40 minute taxi to the ski centre. Alternatively a bus (71) to Spittal of Glenshee (includes several changes and a train to get to Spittal of Glenshee from Edinburgh) can be taken and then a taxi to reach the Centre. The Ski centre does not have accommodation and therefore taking a car is advised as daily travel to and from is essential. 

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EV charging station are available at the Ski Centre. The are 8 total connection points (commando type). 

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Waters Usage

The Glenshee Ski Centre has snow making capabilities. It has a SnowFactory and 4 further old snow making machines which may not be in use, depending on the amount of snow needed and the capabilities of the more efficient SnowFactory. Due to the abundance of water and rainfall in Scotland, water usage is currently not a major issues, but this may change with more droughts of increase severity. 

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Source of Energy

The Glenshee Ski Centre is not connected to the Grid and makes its own power. Diesel Generators are used to generate electricity and power the entire Centre including the snow making facilities and the ski lifts (which are the longest in the UK).  

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Future Planning

Glenshee Ski Centre was planning on securing funding for an Off-grid wind power generation and storage system. This would include a ~100kW wind turbine and battery storage to power the entire Centre. Funding may have been secured, but due to the Covid Pandemic this plan may not occur as UK skiing has not been able to generate as much income the past couple of seasons. 

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Wildlife Preservation

The ski season varies with the weather, but usually starts in November/December and runs until April/May. This ensures that natural seasons aren’t interrupted by artificial snow, potentially causing harm. 

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The resort lies within the Glencoe national nature reserve, host to spectacular natural mountains and rivers as well as animals. The Glencoe Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is nearby and ensures a safe space from which animals can migrate further into the Glencoe national nature reserve. 

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Water Usage

Glencoe Mountain Resort has a Snowfactory to create artificial snow and guarantee a start day to the winter season. The snow requires a lot of water to cover the resort in snow, yet water is in abundance in Scotland due to lakes and rainfall. 

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The Snowfactory offsets events such as in 2016 when the resort only had 32 days of skiing due to a lack of snow. This creates inconsistent season times, which are solved by the Snowfactory that can ensure a start date. 

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Green Transport

The ski resort is accessible by public transport. A Citylink bus travelling between Glasgow and Fort William stops at the Glencoe ski resort. From Fort William this bus takes around 51 minutes and costs 15£ to the resort, which is closer than Glasgow. Both Glasgow and Fort William are easily accessible by public transport, both by train or bus. 

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The Glencoe Mountain Resort has 6 EV charging hook-ups, with 3 different kinds of charge stations and 2 hook-ups each (Type 2, CCS/SAE, CHAdeMO). They are run by the ChargePlace Scotland network. 

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Source of Energy

With Scotland’s push to use more renewables, it currently produces most of its electricity from renewable energy. The Government estimated that on 2020, 56% of electricity was generated from renewables. 13% are still from fossil fuels, while 30% are nuclear. The Glencoe Mountain Resort therefore also uses mainly renewable energy, although currently has no extra renewable projects to curb the use of the national grid.

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Future Planning

After the base station burned down in 2019, funding for a new station (around £500,000) has been secured. The base station will be built to help the resort reach net-zero by creating a more modern building, that is well insulated and therefore needs less power to run. 

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Wildlife Preservation

Cairngorm Mountain Ski Resort is embedded in the Cairngorm Special Area of Conservation (SAC). Fauna and Flora species are monitored and the region has undergone projects to diversify habitats, by creating new peatlands for example.The Resort opens seasonally and while summer activities are still active, the area isn’t burdened by artificial snow, when naturally there wouldn’t be any.

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Water Usage

Scotland has an abundance of freshwater due to its many lakes and rivers and rainfall, reaching its highest average in the Cairngorm region of 77mm in October. Snow making is however a very water intensive process. In 2019 nearly 100 tonnes of snow were made daily for a month using the equivalent mass of water.

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Green Transport

Cairngorm Mountain ski resort and the adjacent town of Aviemore are accessible via public transport. The number 37 bus travels from Aviemore to the Cairngorm Mountain resort and is a good alternative for a car. The resort does not have charging points for electric cars.

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Source of Energy

Due to Scotland push to use renewable energy, it produces most of its electricity from renewable energy. The Government estimated that on 2020, 56% of electricity was generated from renewables. 13% are still from fossil fuels, while 30% are nuclear. Cairngorm Mountain Operates an electric snow factory and electric funicular. While not completely green, the funicular can generate its own electricity , when the lift coming down has greater mass than the one going up. This electricity is fed back to the national grid.Cairngorm has recently made a change to its machinery, using Hydro treated Vegetable Oil (Biodiesel) instead of Diesel as fuel. This change to snow ploughs and snow cannons decreased their carbon emissions by an estimated 90%.

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Future Planning

Due to the resorts location in a SAC, any future building works, will need to be consulted by an environmental survey to ensure wildlife and natural resources are protected. The CairngormMountain estate has created a Masterplan for future applications. This plan includes environmental sustainability, ecology and habitat restoration, helping to educate the public, and providing research opportunity.

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