The Environment Foundation, a non-profit entity started by Aspen Skiing Company employees sixteen years ago, just made its biggest donation ever, giving $50,000 to three separate organizations seeking to block the development of nearby Thompson Divide, a 220,000 acre area of National Forest alongside the looming hulk of Mount Soris in Carbondale, for oil and gas exploration. SG Interests is an oil and gas company seeking permits to open 32,000 acres to oil exploration, and coalition of local ranchers, along with local residents and a collection of NGOs, are currently working together to permanently block oil and gas development on the federal lands and maintain their roadless nature.
According to Transworld Business, the grant is the single largest in the Foundation's history, and is part of a larger $116,000 in donations for a variety of local environmental organizations. The Foundation has granted $2.2 million to 401 projects over its history, and Aspen Skiing Company employee grants are matched by outside groups such as the Aspen Community Foundation, the Aspen Skiing Company Family Fund, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and Swire Coca-Cola.
· Environment Foundation makes largest grant in its history [Transworld Business]
· Thompson Divide Coalition