Breckenridge Employees Remove 800 Pounds of Trash From Slopes

As the snow melts on the slopes of Breckenridge, Colorado, a winter's worth of trash and treasures emerge like seashells washing up on the beach.

In an effort to protect wildlife and the local ecosystem, Breckenridge employees spent time on June 11th, 2024 cleaning up items left behind on Peaks 7, 8, and 9. Check out the video below, keep reading for more on the story.

Breckenridge's cleanup day isn't unordinary for a ski resort of its size and stature. Thousands upon thousands of skiers visit the resort each winter, and it's inevitable that easily-lost items such as gloves, ski poles, and AirPods can be found in bulk.

In email correspondence with POWDER , a Breckenridge official revealed the total haul of trash and misplaced items that were recovered on clean up day. The numbers are quite staggering. Take a look below:

Breckenridge Cleanup Day Stats:

• 800 pounds of trash
• 4 phones
• 7 pairs of AirPods
• Countless ski poles
• 9 individual skis
• 1 snowboard
• "Several" Epic Passes, IDs, Credit Cards, and even a few Ikon Passes
• 1 giant bottle of barbecue sauce

The trash and debris were cleaned up by over Breckenridge 200 employees, and led by the resort's 'Street Team'. The group hosts an annual Mountain Cleanup day this time each year to protect and preserve the mountains they love.

Breck Street Team Lead and Senior Manager of Child Care Brittany Comfort chimed in on the importance of cleaning up the mountain, "Mountain clean up day is as fun for our teams as it is beneficial to the mountain environment! Our teams love getting out there, picking up trash, and helping to reduce the impact on our habitats. It is a great way for us to live our Commitment to Zero goals while getting outside."

Accidents happen, but Breck's cleanup day is an excellent reminder to pack out what you bring to the mountain.

Director of Base Area Operations Ryan Taylor puts it perfectly: "The ecosystems that exist here are a big reason why this resort, and places like it are so special, so we really want to protect that. We also just want to keep it beautiful."

Keeping our mountains beautiful. Now there's something we can all get behind.

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