S2:EP16 - David Perry: A Sustainable Future

Last Chair: The Ski Utah Podcast

As skiers, we all have a responsibility to be good stewards of the mountains we ride. Sustainability is vital for our future. David Perry, one the ski industry's most knowledgeable advocates for preservation of our mountain resources, sees a true sustainable future - if we can all work together! Ski Utah's Last Chair takes a look into our future and the vital steps we must take now.

Perry has spent his entire career on the tops of mountains, from the Canadian Rockies to Colorado. Today he serves as executive vice president, environment, social, governance for Alterra Mountain Company, with resorts around the USA and Canada, including Utah's own Deer Valley Resort and Solitude Mountain Resort. His passion for being a good steward of our mountain landscapes runs deep.

While Perry works for Alterra, his impact is broad. In the highly competitive world of ski resorts, one topic brings all skiers and snowboarders together - preserving our environment for the future.

When did you really develop your passion for sustainability?
I really gained an education about what environmental activism was about when I got to Colorado and realized that, you know what, we've got this pristine natural environment and we're not treating it with enough respect. And we're also, frankly, the true canaries in the coal mine. We are the people in the high mountain places that are witnessing the impacts of climate change firsthand. And that's still the case today, because we know this climate is changing. It's been really difficult to get people's attention on sustainability. But ski area operators, skiers, snowboarders, mountain lovers - they know it's happening.

How is the resort industry working together?
Our industry association - the National Ski Areas Association - has a really robust roadmap for how to tackle environmental sustainability in our industry. A lot of work's been done. Alterra is a leader, Vail Resorts is really on board as a leader, as well as POWDR Corp and Boyne. We've rallied around a set of action steps that we should all focus upon.

What is the outlook 25 years from now?
There are two possible futures. The future I like to believe is possible is us coming together within a short number of years, reducing our CO2 emissions and our carbon footprint to a degree where we can slow, stop and then even reverse climate change in the coming years and decades. That's a global effort. But we need to do our part. There's also a picture of the future that I don't like to believe that we're going to allow to happen as human beings. We have the power to clean up our environment, to reduce - get off - our dependency on fossil fuels, reduce the carbon output, reduce CO2 in our atmosphere and stabilize our climate. It's in our hands.

In this week's podcast with Alterra leader David Perry, you'll learn about sustainability, plus a lot more about Perry's fascinating connectivity with the sport, the environment and Utah.

• Who was his early mentor in the Canadian Rockies?
• How does his hobby tie together his passion for mountain landscapes.
• How did he lead a mutually beneficial effort for sustainability with a coal mine?

If you are a skier, snowboarder or just love life in the mountains, this episode of Last Chair: The Ski Utah Podcast presented by High West Distillery is an important listen for you. You can find Last Chair on your favorite podcast platform. Subscribe to get first access to every episode.

Areas of Sustainability Focus
The topic of sustainability is complex. What is the science? How does it impact our future? What can we do about it? David Perry identified several broad areas of engagement - for the resort industry and for each of us as skiers and snowboarders. Listen to Last Chair: The Ski Utah Podcastto learn more.

Energy
"Number one is energy," said Perry. How can resorts and all of us better use renewable energy? "The move to renewable energy to sustain operations, to run our lifts, our buildings, our snowmaking systems and everything on 100% renewable or create enough energy to offset your energy use. in Utah, Rocky Mountain Power is moving very aggressively to wean the power grid there off of fossil fuels, coal, natural gas fired plants and move to renewables - wind and solar primarily."

Climate Action and Advocacy
Sometimes we need to make our voices heard! "I call it climate action and advocacy," said Perry. "We as mountain enthusiasts and ski areas can use our voice to talk to others to say, 'we've experienced climate change firsthand and we're doing what we can in our town or in our environment to clean it up.'" How can skiers help? Talk to others, talk to your state and federal representatives. Talk with your action and your supporting words.

Good Stewards of Our Habitat
How do we protect our habitat? Are we good stewards of our natural resources? "It's everything from water resources to our forest health and habitat, making sure that we are operating our ski areas in our beautiful mountain places really responsibly," said Perry. Resorts watch for run off that can damage wildlife habitat, and monitor forest health for pine beetle epidemics or wildfire danger - impacts of climate change.

Recycling is a basic tenet of being a good steward. "Waste reduction, composting and recycling are really critical elements of living a sustainable lifestyle," said Perry. "But we as operators also have to provide that to make it seamless and easy to do. If you go from place to place and there's no obvious place to recycle your glass and aluminum and it all goes in the trash in the landfill, speak up saying, 'why do you not have recycling bins here?'"

Transportation
Simple as it may sound, car pooling makes a difference. So does taking the bus or advocating for cleaner fuels for buses. "People today have to burn fossil fuels to get to our ski areas, to enjoy their favorite pastime," said Perry. "Are you willing to drive less? Are you willing to look at a hybrid vehicle, an all-electric vehicle as the grid is starting to support that."

Expansion of bus service, like was done in Big Cottonwood Canyon, will reduce car traffic. "It's essential we use our mass transit or shared transit options and we have to improve them," said Perry. "That's one way to reduce our fossil fuel burning habits. It's an essential sense of social responsibility."

Engaging Together
Each of us can do our own part by being good stewards of our landscape. Banded to...