Ramboll specialists have been providing ecological planning, design, and support for Winter Park Resorts for nearly a decade. High in the Rocky Mountains, the resort covers 3,000 acres of terrain used for skiing in the winter and hiking and biking in the summer.
Sensitive trail expansion to protect biodiversity
When the resort wanted to expand their ski area bicycle trail, they engaged Ramboll personnel to provide wetlands, soils, and vegetation assessment and regulatory support for the resort. Primary concerns are impacts to water quality, wildlife migration corridors, fisheries, and for endangered, threatened or potentially listed botanical and fisheries species.
Fisheries considerations included protection of metapopulations of native cutthroat trout. Botanic considerations included assessment for multiple rare and sensitive species including Botrychium (moonwort or grape-fern) in addition to a broad diversity of alpine, semi-alpine and wetland species.
Integrating new buildings into surrounding ecosystem
On top of one of the mountains is Lunch Rock, a new building that serves as a restaurant and wedding venue. The Ramboll team was responsible for integrating the complex into the surrounding ecosystem through landscape design. Ramboll personnel designed and implemented the planting and seeding plans that utilised local native alpine, subalpine, and montane plant species within a revegetation matrix.
Continuing annual surveys
Ramboll continues to undertake annual surveys for rare and sensitive species assessment, wetland delineation, alpine areas, lift and utility corridors, and roadways as the resort area continues to expand its bike and ski trails, purposely guiding them away from sensitive areas.
