Alta, UT — Cheers to the folks at Alta Ski Resort in Utah who have instituted a new program to recycle old ski passes and are preventing 30lbs of plastic from ending up in landfills per month:
“Since the start of the pass collection pilot program in February 2025, we have collected an average of 30 pounds of used ski cards per month. By weighing these passes, we’re gathering data to help us track the amount of plastic waste that ski cards really produce and find ways to reduce it.”
The program is run by the Alta Environmental Center (AEC) who are dedicated to sustainability and the 83-year-old ski area’s land conservation efforts. The concept is very simple and quite effective, here’s the pitch:
“Picture this: It’s a powder day and you’re eagerly waiting to load the Collins lift when “front row” is called. You confidently shuffle up to the gates to scan your pass, but then you hear the dreaded sound of rejection. Awkwardly, you shimmy and fumble through your pockets only to find your Alta day pass sandwiched between an Alta card from last week, a two-year-old Mountain Collective and a zero-balance gift card from grandma.
What do you do now? Keep your current pass in a pocket by itself but don’t toss those old cards in the trash—think greener!
This winter, Alta Ski Area is recycling retired plastic ski passes. Most of these cards cannot be reused and are typically sent from the slopes to a landfill, where they will remain indefinitely. Instead, Alta will send the collected passes to Terracycle where they will be transformed into new materials, such as playgrounds and gym flooring. Keep an eye out for our green pass recycling boxes at the base of each lift or hand your extra passes to an Alta employee.”
Again, kudos to the folks at Alta for creating this simple to use program. Hopefully we see other resorts catch on and this becomes the industry standard.
