UPPER SALFORD — Congresswoman Madeleine Dean, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small and other dignitaries toured Spring Mountain Adventures last week to highlight the business’s clean energy investment.
Under the federal Inflation Reduction Act, the year-round skiing facility received a $670,000 Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) grant for solar panel installation. REAP provides loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems and energy efficient improvements.
Spring Mountain owner Rick Buckman said that the REAP grant will fund roughly 40% of the solar panel installation, making the project feasible.
“The electric savings all by itself would make it not worth putting in, but with the grant, it makes it feasible,” said Buckman. “It makes it a no-brainer to do the project.”
Buckman said that the project will significantly reduce the business’s energy costs, noting the exorbitant amount of electricity used by the snowmaking equipment and ice skating rink chillers. He cited the biggest source of the business’s energy costs as the large snowmaking machine on the ski slope, which was recently installed due to warmer winters shortening the window for snowmaking.
“The need was because of global warming, but it uses so much electric that we thought we were contributing to it, so that’s where the solar makes me feel better about doing this,” said Buckman.
Torres Small and Dean stressed the importance of investing in underserved communities and hailed the project’s benefits to both the environment and the local economy.
“This is a clear win, and it’s a great example of what investing in America’s small rural communities can accomplish,” said Torres Small.
“We were mighty proud to pass this legislation, knowing it was going to bring opportunities to rural places, small businesses, family-owned businesses, and you just see their commitment,” added Dean. “They’re not in this to make a fortune, and they feel a responsibility to the planet and to their community.”
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