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Massanutten Resort in Virginia uses up a lot of power. There’s the ski resort, which then is used as a mountain biking park during the offseason. Then there are the waterparks. They have a year-round indoor waterpark and an outdoor waterpark. Other parts of the resort include various lodging properties, a golf course, and a family adventure park.

With all of these amenities, Massanutten uses up a lot of energy. Due to the energy use, especially from the water park, Massanutten is committing to using more renewable energy.

The Daily News-Record reports that Massanutten Resort is currently installing 2700 solar panels to power its waterpark. Construction on the project began in Mid-April, and many of the panels have already been installed. Supply chain issues have delayed some of the solar panel racks. The panels are expected to be connected to the waterpark’s electric meter by September and will last for 25 years. The arrays will power 1/3 of the indoor waterpark’s energy consumption with the power of 1.5 million kilowatt hours. This solar array is the first ground-mounted solar field on the property.

Massanutten Resort has become known in the ski industry as a leader in sustainability. Over the past few years, they’ve added solar panels to the roof of their laundry facility and the Woodstone building. Currently, the laundry buildings’ solar panels account for about 45% of that building’s power usage. Woodstone’s building solar panels account for 15% of its total usage. This year, they were finalists for the Overall Environmental Excellence and Climate Change Impact awards from National Ski Areas Association.

While no other solar projects have been announced yet, more are planned in the future in order to offset electricity costs:

“Number one, we own 6,000 acres up here and a lot of it is wooded. We have a mission to be stewards of the environment, so we want to do what we can to assist in that endeavor. The other thing is that we are a one hundred percent employee-owned company so we are all looking to save whatever money we can save.”

Click here to learn more about Massanutte’s renewable energy initiatives.

Image Credits: Massanutten Resort 

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