OBTAINING THE GREEN FLOCON LABEL
LES ARCS IS MOVING FORWARD TO BECOME
AN EVER MORE RESPONSIBLE DESTINATION
Monday, December 7, French alpine resort Les Arcs has been awarded the Flocon Vert label, the first resort in Savoie to attain the mark which shows a commitment to sustainable development.
Obtaining this label, which is awarded by European organisation Mountain Riders, is an important step in Les Arcs’ goal to become a more responsible destination and is part of a continuous improvement process.
An expected Flake
It has been almost a year since Les Arcs launched a bid to be awarded the Flocon Vert. In that time the Mountain Riders team have regularly met with local figures and businesses to construct action plans, as well as making field visits to the resort.
Mountain Riders finally ruled on Monday 7th December 2020 that Les Arcs would be presented with the long-awaited Flocon Vert label, guaranteeing its commitment to a sustainable development policy.
The Flocon Vert label 
The "Flocon Vert" label was created in 2011 by the association "Mountain Riders", to support mountain stations towards ecoresponsible actions. The label is issued based on compliance with 20 criteria divided into 4 themes: local economy, social & cultural, governance & destination and environment & natural resources.
Obtaining the Flocon Vert label allows Les Arcs to better formalise its objectives, knowing the resort’s strengths and where they need to improve. After being awarded the Flocon Vert, the real hard work then starts. "Mountain Riders"will continue to support Les Arcs and follow the actions put in place. Every three years, the resort will also be re-challenged and will have to engage in more and more demanding actions.
Sustainable actions for this winter
Several sustainable actions will already be carried out this winter.
A new, key project for Les Arcs is the # Drinklocal campaign and will start the resort’s journey towards «Zero plastic».
Considering that more than 1,000,000 plastic bottles are consumed each year in the area of Les Arcs - Bourg Saint Maurice, and that these polluting bottles travel on average 300 km, the environmental impact of water in a bottle is 450 times that of tap water.
Visitors to Les Arcs are being encouraged to drink tap water, and new water fountains have been installed in the ski area (departure of the Cachette, Pré Saint Esprit and Marmotte chairlifts). Skiers can also buy reusable water bottles in shops across the resort.
At a municipal level, there are projects such as Cap Energie – which aims to reduce the energy impact of tourist, cultural and educational infrastructures, as well as street lighting. Plus, the installation of solar panels on ski lifts and updates to the funicular from Bourg Saint Maurice to Arc 1600.
