SAM Magazine—Taylors Falls, Minn., Jan. 20, 2022—Wild Mountain is installing a 40-kilowatt solar array this spring. In 2021, Wild Mountain became the first CarbonNeutral Certified ski area in North America, and this solar investment aims to help the mountain continue to drive down its overall carbon usage.

Wild will work with Cedar Creek Energy to install 144 panels on the roof of its new, 11,000-square-foot maintenance building. Any excess power the system produces will be returned to the grid.

The mountain has invested more than $2 million in improvements over the past two years as part of its “Keep It Wild” campaign. The campaign is focused on improving the ski area’s infrastructure while keeping environmental sustainability in mind. Projects have aimed to reduce energy consumption, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and eliminate plastic from the waste stream.  

Wild Mountain is a four-season operation with 100 acres of skiing and snowboarding terrain in winter, and a waterpark, alpine slide, go karts, and a free-fall experience in summer.