Renewable Energy
The most significant way for any company to affect climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions is to rid itself of its dependence upon fossil fuels. One of the most effective ways to do that—besides shutting down—is to develop clean, emission free, renewable solar, wind, or geothermal energy at our operations. In the past few years, Xanterra has dedicated significant resources to increasing renewable energy at its facilities.
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Wind and Other Renewable Power
At Crater Lake, Mt. Rushmore, and Zion, more than 45 percent of the entire operations’ electricity usages are derived from wind power. At Bryce Canyon, more than 36 percent of all electricity is from wind power, and at Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon, more than six and seven percent, respectively, is derived from wind power.
In total, Xanterra used 8,214,723 kWh in renewable wind, solar, or geothermal energy in 2007 (although Xanterra uses a large amount of hydroelectric power, that power source is not included in these figures). This represents 18.2 percent of all national park electricity usage and 11.5 percent of all Xanterra operations’ electricity usage.
Xanterra has already exceeded its 2015 goal of powering the company with a minimum of seven percent renewable energy, and the company has already exceeded the 3 percent goal set with the EPA to become a Green Energy Partner. By using wind power, each year Xanterra prevents 6.1 million pounds of carbon dioxide from reaching the atmosphere. This is equivalent to driving a car 6.8 million fewer miles or planting 900 acres of trees.
Turning Used Cooking Oil Into Biofuel
Each year, Xanterra pays a licensed service provider to  recycle tens of thousands of gallons of used kitchen grease—a waste product of kitchen fryersoff-site. On-site reuse of this material as a biofuel can significantly reduce the environmental impact of Xanterra’s kitchen operations while providing a renewable fuel biodiesel that can be burned in boilers and vehicles. At Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore, Xanterra recently purchased biodiesel conversion equipment to do just that. In addition to delivering significant environmental benefits, this will also serve as a highly visible element of the company’s environmental outreach and education program. By eliminating the need to transport used oil hundreds of miles away for recycling, Xanterra will also lower its air emissions and significantly reduce its contribution to global warming by utilizing less fossil fuel. (Biofuel is considered a renewable “carbon neutral” fuel which emits carbon dioxide only recently absorbed by living plants, as opposed to fossil fuels). |
Only a small volume of biodiesel has been produced to date as part of this pilot project. In the future large volumes of biodiesel will be used to power boilers as well as diesel fleet vehicles.
“Deep Green” Case Study: Zion Lodge
In the last few years at Zion Lodge, Xanterra has implemented aggressive energy and natural resource efficiency programs that now make it one of the most resource efficient and “green” facilities in the national park system.
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