Winter Tourism and Climate Change in the Alps: An Assessment of Resource Consumption, Snow Reliability, and Future Snowmaking Potential

Christian Rixen,Marco Pütz,David Gallati,Corina Lardelli,Peter Bebi,Michaela Teich,Mandy Pohl

doi:10.1659/mrd-journal-d-10-00112.1

Christian Rixen, Marco Pütz + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.1659/mrd-journal-d-10-00112.1

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Abstract

Abstract The winter tourism industry is facing considerable challenges with climate change; it is increasingly responding with investments in snowmaking facilities. We present a study on 3 tourism destinations in the Swiss Alps that addressed resource consumption of snowmaking, snow reliability, and future snowmaking potential in a warmer climate. The energy consumption of snowmaking in the ski resorts was in the lower range of what could be expected from literature values. It comprised ∼0.5% of the respective municipality's energy consumption and was moderate compared with other tourism-related activities. Water consumption, however, was in the higher range with regard to what was expected from literature values and was also high compared with other water uses (eg 36% compared with drinking water consumption in one community). Natural snow cover was partly critical for winter sports at low elevations at ∼1200 masl, but uncritical at higher elevations above 2000 masl. Snow cover will become even more crit...

Highlights

Reliable snow conditions represent a crucial economic prerequisite for the skiing industry (Elsasser and Messerli 2001; Scott et al 2003; Probstl 2006; Steiger and Mayer 2008)
The actual energy consumption was in the lower range of what might have been expected based on literature values: the actual energy consumption in Braunwald amounted to,26,000 kWh compared with up to 116,000 kWh expected energy consumption and 1.7 million kWh versus up to 4
Resource consumption and availability as well as snow cover and snowmaking potential are key issues when investing in snowmaking facilities

Summary

Introduction

Reliable snow conditions represent a crucial economic prerequisite for the skiing industry (Elsasser and Messerli 2001; Scott et al 2003; Probstl 2006; Steiger and Mayer 2008). The lack of snow due to low precipitation or high temperatures is an immense challenge for winter sport destinations and especially mountain railway companies. Artificial snow production is the key adaptation strategy to rising temperatures, enhanced economic competition, and increasing requirements of winter tourists. In Switzerland, artificial snow production increased in cover from ,10% of the total ski piste area in 2000 to 36% in 2010 (Seilbahnen Schweiz 2010). Austria has already reached 62%, whereas, in some areas in the Italian Alps, artificial snow can be produced on 100% of the ski runs (Hahn 2004). The winter of 2010–2011 had below-average snow cover in most parts of the Swiss Alps, the mountain railway companies look back on an economically successful season, possibly in part due to improvements in snowmaking technology (Seilbahnen Schweiz 2011)

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