MAINE PUBLIC • March 17, 2026
Greg Hunton has been driving a snow groomer at Sunday River for 25 years, so he knows his way around the sprawling ski resort in Newry. The mountain is making new investments to increase snowmaking efficiency and use less water and energy. As a warming climate makes New England winters less cold and snowy, snowmaking has become an essential tool to give skiers the amount of snow they expect on the slopes. Last year, Sunday River used aircraft equipped with LiDAR to map out the topography of the mountain, almost down to the inch. Now when the two LiDAR-equipped cats go out, their scans show the difference between the trail surface and the base map, thereby giving the snow depth. Sunday River has committed to a sustainability "Forever Project" to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, reduce waste, and improve efficiencies.