Tamarack Lodge earns LEED certification

Heavenly Mountain Resort’s year-old Tamarack Lodge has received its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Tamarack Lodge is the first LEED-certified, on-mountain building at Lake Tahoe.

Heavenly worked with a LEED-certified commissioning engineer and design team to ensure the process was transparent and closely aligned with the U.S. Green Building Council’s recommendations. The project features native and adaptive plant species in re-vegetation and landscaping to reduce water consumption.

Heavenly's Tamarack Lodge is Lake Tahoe first on-mountain LEED building. Photo/LTN file

Fifty-six tons of construction waste were diverted from local landfills.

Ten percent of the total building materials were sourced from recycled materials.

Heavenly used low-emitting sealants and paints which kept the levels of volatile organic compounds well below recommended standards.

The Tamarack Lodge roof material was chosen carefully to reduce heat island effect, a term used to describe an area that concentrates heat leading to increased energy needs and green house gas emissions.

Many behind-the-scenes design features will allow for on-going energy and water savings making a lasting positive impact on the environment. ow-flush lavatories and other smart plumbing fixture designs will help Heavenly cut water consumption by 33 percent. Light timers and automatic control system will help reduce light pollution on the mountain and cut energy use in the future.