NOLS Rocky Mountain Unveils Responsible Renovations

LANDER, WYO — Standing on fresh, lush grass in the front yard of NOLS Rocky Mountain in Lander, Wyo., a group of about 50 soaked up the warm spring sun. All around them, solar panels adorning the facility were doing the same.

Thanks to Rocky Mountain Power’s Blue Skies grant—and the subscribers who support it, NOLS Rocky Mountain completed a two-phase solar plan this spring. The grant, which is available to all Wyoming businesses, covered 80 percent of the phase-two costs, in addition to its contribution to phase one. Crews installed the final 40 of 124 solar panels this March. The goal is for the building to produce 70 percent of the facility’s power usage.

On a sunny day like Wednesday, power generation far exceeds use. Employees of NOLS Rocky Mountain know this because of the monitoring system installed with this final step.

“It’s fun to see when the solar line [is] exceeding the usage line on the graph,” said Phil Schneider of Creative Energies, which installed all the solar panels. He added that the monitoring system also inspires and empowers the staff to further reduce their power use.

In fact, the grant itself enabled NOLS to pursue more efficiency in the building. NOLS Rocky Mountain Director Gary Cukjati said the grant funds made it possible for NOLS to expand the spring sustainability undertaking beyond solar capacity. Thanks to freed-up funds, the facility now boasts a geothermal heating and cooling system and more efficient lighting, insulation, food storage and more.

In addition to responsible use of resources, this solar array is an educational tool for NOLS. The nonprofit institution is dedicated to being the leading source and teacher of wilderness skills and leadership that serve people and the environment. A large part of that is helping students develop and environmental ethic and demonstrating ways to engender that sense of responsibility in the frontcountry.

About NOLS

Founded in 1965 by legendary mountaineer Paul Petzoldt, NOLS is the leader in wilderness education, providing awe-inspiring, transformative experiences to more than 15,000 students each year. These students, ages 14 to 70, learn in the wildest and most remote classrooms worldwide—from the Amazon rain forest, to rugged peaks in the Himalaya, to Alaskan glaciers and Arctic tundra. Graduates are active leaders with lifelong environmental ethics and outdoor skills. NOLS also offers customized courses through NOLS Professional Training, and the Wilderness Medicine Institute of NOLS is the leading teacher of wilderness medicine worldwide. For more information, call (800) 710-NOLS (6657) or visit www.nols.edu.