The researchers defined a very high risk of snow shortage as a year with little snow every two years. At four degrees, according to the modelling, practically all ski areas would have a very high risk of insufficient snow. In Switzerland, 99% of ski areas would run out of snow without artificial snowmaking.
Ap
A third of Swiss ski resorts face a very high risk of snow shortage if the climate warms by two degrees Celsius. Across Europe, even more than half of all ski resorts would be affected. This is what researchers predict in the scientific journal Nature Communications.
This content was published on
3 minutes
Keystone-SDA/amva
Español
es
Gran incertidumbre sobre la nieve en las estaciones de esquí suizas
The study published on Monday by researchers from France and Austria examined the situation of 2,234 ski resorts in 28 European countries. Among them are 203 ski resorts in the Swiss Alps with a total area of 144 square kilometres.
The researchers defined a very high risk of snow shortage as a year with little snow every two years. At four degrees, according to the modelling, practically all ski areas would have a very high risk of insufficient snow. In Switzerland, 99% of ski areas would run out of snow without artificial snowmaking.
According to the analysis, if the temperature increase were limited to 1.5 degrees, 5% of ski resorts in the Swiss Alps would be at high risk. Across Europe, this would already be 32%.
Artificial snowmaking
According to the analysis, artificial snowmaking could significantly reduce the risk of snow shortages. But artificial snowmaking also has its limits: With a snowmaking rate of 50%, around 27%of ski resorts across Europe would still be affected by a very high risk of snow shortage if the climate warmed by two degrees, and as much as 71% if the climate warmed by four degrees.
In the Swiss Alps, five (with two degrees of climate warming) and 38% (with four degrees of warming) of ski areas would be affected by a very high risk of snow shortage. In the Swiss Alpine region, 53% of all pistes can be covered with artificial snow, according to figures from the Federal Statistical Office from 2021. A snowmaking rate of 50% is therefore close to reality. However, the production of artificial snow also increases the demand for water and electricity, as the researchers pointed out in the study.
While the authors emphasise that the snowmaking predictions are based on simplified assumptions and that their results should not be considered definitive, they do offer ways of assessing the impact of artificial snowmaking. Nevertheless, they offer opportunities to better consider the impact of climate change on the ski tourism industry.
More
Debate
Hosted by:
Marc-André Miserez
How is the lack of snow affecting your winter holiday plans in the mountains?
The year has only just begun – with record temperatures and not much snow. How have your winter holiday plans been affected?
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate them into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles. You can find them here.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Aging society
Is Switzerland repeating England’s housing mistakes?
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
Zurich arbitration authority rules in favour of tenants of ‘Sugus Houses’
This content was published on
A conciliation authority says the terminations of 105 flat leases in the so-called "Sugus Houses" in the centre of Zurich were abusive. The tenants therefore do not have to move out - at least for the time being.
This content was published on
Visitors to Switzerland spent CHF19.6 billion ($23.9 billion) last year, a 2.2% rise compared to the previous year, the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) said on Monday.
This content was published on
Despite the current tense economic situation, Swiss consumer sentiment remains positive. The Swiss spent more money in May than the previous year, particularly on restaurant visits and leisure activities, as shown by the latest figures released by PostFinance.
This content was published on
A bear killed four sheep in the Lower Engadine region near Scuol, canton Graubünden, last week. This was the first bear attack on local livestock in four years.
This content was published on
Experts believe that economic development in Switzerland will be weaker in 2026 than the forecasts made three months ago. They have also lowered their predictions for the current year.
This content was published on
Fewer people in Switzerland have a religious affiliation and the proportion who practice their religion regularly is steadily declining, a survey finds.
Study: trees have major cooling effect even in extreme heat
This content was published on
Plane trees in cities have an important cooling effect even in extreme heat, according to a new study by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL).
EPFL launches digitised version of Battle of Murten panorama
This content was published on
To mark the anniversary of the Battle of Murten on 22 June 1476, the Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) has launched a website that offers the public an immersive experience of the huge panorama painting of the historic battle.
77th Swiss Gymnastics Festival praised for ‘positive energy’
This content was published on
The 77th Federal Gymnastics Festival drew to a close on Sunday in Lausanne, after eleven days of popular celebration and sporting performances.
Up to one metre of fresh snow expected in Swiss Alps this week
This content was published on
Weather experts expect up to 70 centimetres of new snow above 1,600 metres in the Swiss Alps in the coming days, and possibly even more higher up.
Swiss ski resorts struggle with snow shortage and record temperatures
This content was published on
Huge swathes of green mountainside, persistent warm weather and slushy runs have been causing headaches for Swiss ski resorts.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.