American Notes Vermont

Skiing conjures up images of fresh mountain air and cool, clean white slopes. In Vermont, however, these crystalline visions have been replaced by a less refreshing proposition: several of the state's ski resorts, hard pressed by a chronic lack of water at high altitudes, want to pump treated sewage through their snowmaking equipment. So far Vermont's environmental conservation agency has not approved the innovation. The proposal has set off a battle between environmentalists and resort owners. One bumper sticker reads, KILLINGTON: WHERE THE AFFLUENT MEET THE EFFLUENT. Killington officials and local developers are not amused. C.E. ("Cowboy") Snodgrass, a Killington carpenter, says he was fired from his job at a condominium construction site when he refused to remove the sticker from his truck. Snodgrass is suing, and the American Civil Liberties Union argues that his dismissal violated his right to free speech. In another action, Killington has filed a libel suit against the Barre-Montpelier Times-Argus newspaper for publishing a cartoon showing two skiers riding a ski lift carrying toilet plungers instead of ski poles. The caption: "Uh-oh, looks like the snowmaking machines are clogged again."