The Environment
 Though apparently tranquil, the Columbia Icefield is a powerful, dynamic force, shaping the regional landscape and climate. Its glaciers endlessly advance and retreat in an ancient elemental dance, in a place where time is measured in millennia.
Humanity is also part of this dance. Even though we have had an impact in the Canadian Rockies for over 10,000 years, we are latecomers in evolutionary terms. Brewster Tours and Parks Canada recognize the critical importance of tempering control with responsibility, and we take that responsibility very seriously at the Columbia Icefield. The new Icefield Centre uses both common sense and new, innovative technology to reduce man's impact on the environment. The Icefield Centre meets standards for wastewater effluent as defined by Parks Canada; the other environmental stewardship measures we've implemented are voluntary, the result of our respect and understanding of this very special place.
While we are only visitors here, the Icefield is home to an astonishing variety of plants and animals. The main focus of both Brewster and Parks Canada is to increase the understanding, appreciation, and respect visitors have of this special place. Even this Centre with its stone base, and glacial motif are designed to reinforce these efforts. The Glacier Gallery exhibits give strong conservation messages about area plants, animals, and water, and the Glacier Experience Tour on the glacier surface reinforces these messages.
Grizzly bears den nearby for the winter, and are not unusual in our area during the spring and fall months. Extreme care is taken to secure all garbage from the great bears. We know that a bear habituated to human food or garbage usually ends up dead, and we like our bears healthy and wild! The same applies to all animals - feeding them or otherwise interfering with their natural activities only shortens their lives.
Here at the Icefield, many plants are at the extreme limit of their habitats. Plants take decades to become established, and any damage is long lasting. By structuring pedestrian routes along established footpaths and eliminating random trampling, we're allowing damaged areas to slowly recover. The elevated stairs from the carpark straddle the terminal moraine of the Athabasca Glacier, so that colonizing plants can continue their struggle to gain a foothold without being trampled underfoot. We've even introduced snowblowing equipment for sensitive areas, rather than plowing and compacting snow into ancient trees and risking damage to branches, the snowblower lifts and throws the snow, eliminating compaction and damage.
There is no conclusion to environmental stewardship practices. Just as the Columbia Icefield area is a dynamic, changing environment, our efforts to be exemplary Jasper National Park citizens never cease.
Water Conservation
The freshest, purest water in the world drains from the Columbia Icefield, providing us with an unparalleled source of cold spring water.
The new Icefield Centre and the Brewster staff quarters replace a variety of older structures from a time when little concern was given to water conservation. Inefficient water fixtures, 'bleeders' and antiquated appliances have been replaced. We've taken the usual conservation steps of using only springloaded taps, lowflush toilets, and 'water miser' shower heads to minimize water wastage. But we've taken water conservation a step further by recycling! Every drop of water that goes down a drain in the new Centre is filtered, and then recycled through our lowvolume toilets before being piped to our sewage treatment plant. Thus, all water is used twice, drastically reducing freshwater consumption.
Hotel laundry is shipped to Jasper for cleaning, rather than introducing hard to remove chemical whiteners into our wastewater stream.
Water conservation measures are also employed at the Brewster staff quarters. Additionally, there is a double plumbing system that separates black (toilet) water, and grey (other uses) water. If required the 'black' water can be held, and trucked to remote wastewater treatment sites. Water Treatment
The Icefield has its own wastewater treatment plant, handling all effluent. This state of the art plant uses new technology to produce outflow that consistently meets or exceeds Jasper National Park's tough effluent standards. This is no small feat in an area that is frozen solid six months of the year, and then suddenly hosts a million visitors in just a few months.
Power Generation Conservation
Electricity is generated on-site, with a modern three diesel generator power plant. During periods of low demand, only a small generator runs. As load increases, a larger generator comes online, cycling the smaller one off. If load increases further, the small one comes back on to supplement the big one. If still more power is required, the last generator comes on to support the other two. This completely automatic 'power on demand' system means that we only need to run the minimum sized generator(s) for the power required. This is a vast improvement over the usual practice, continuously operating one big generator that is capable of meeting peak demands but underutilized at other times.
An added benefit is that the same modern engines used to power the Icefield Centre generators are also used in the fleet of Ice Explorers - parts and motors are interchangeable! These engines are continually being 'self tuned' by a computer, adjusting fuel mixtures to the current temperature, pressure, and altitude. When you follow a modern bus that is equipped with these new engines, you will not see the familiar cloud of black smoke (unburned fuel). Diesel buses, motorhomes, and even older cars that spew black smoke are usually powered by older motors, tuned to a much lower elevation.
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