Glacier Guides and Montana Raft was recently recognized by Montana State University Extension and Montana Governor Steve Bullock for its pollution prevention efforts and statewide environmental leadership.

The EcoStar awards program recognizes Montana businesses whose impacts support environmentally and economically sustainable communities by conserving resources of water, energy and clean air and by serving as role models by surpassing state and federal requirements to reduce solid and hazardous waste.

Glacier Guides was founded in 1983 to provide ecologically sensitive backcountry guiding and interpretation in Glacier National Park. A few years later, it expanded to include rafting on two of the area’s Wild and Scenic rivers, the North and Middle Forks of the Flathead River. Since that time, Glacier Guides and Montana Raft’s mission has been to provide exceptional active travel vacations and experiences in and around Glacier National Park while preserving and protecting Glacier’s unique ecosystems using the best available ecologically sound practices in its rafting, hiking, biking, fishing, and lodging operations.

As such, in 2010, when the company decided to enter the accommodations business, they started by studying green construction, specifically Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The 12 room Glacier Guides Lodge in West Glacier was completed to LEED standards, although the company did not choose to go through the certification process, which is very expensive.

Glacier Guides and Montana Raft’s environmental efforts are diverse but focus primarily on waste reduction in all areas of its operation, from kitchen garbage composting to not using plastic water bottles to maximizing fuel transportation efficiency.

“We are a small business that relies on a healthy environment,” Co-Owner Denny Gignoux said. “We’ve received the EcoStar Award before, and it inspires us to constantly re-examine our environmental efforts and determine what else we can do. Every little bit counts, and sometimes the most environmentally friendly choice is not the most obvious one.”

For example, Gignoux noted that a large van with 15 people gets better mileage per person than a compact car like Prius, because it holds more people.