What does the shortage of snow mean to winter sports resorts?

DW (English)

Alpine resorts are increasingly using snow cannons to provide the artificial snow needed for skiing. What future is there for winter sports in times of climate change?

Transcript

00:00Balderschwang, a popular ski resort in southern Germany where snow was all but certain,

00:06but it no longer falls in the quantities it used to.

00:09With a general lack of snow in the Alps, how much longer will ski trips to the region be possible?

00:17We miss the cold days that we had in January and February,

00:22which of course ensured that the snow that was there held up better.

00:28This mountain village in the Oberallgäu region lies at an altitude of 1044 meters

00:33in a high valley that is also known as Bavarian Siberia due to the amount of snow it typically receives.

00:40So far, Balderschwang has had more snow than many alpine ski resorts that lie higher up.

00:46We open to Lake Constance like a funnel.

00:50The mountains close up and the clouds get stuck inside, giving us more precipitation.

00:55That means a bit more water in summer, which is good, and snow in winter.

01:02Winter settles in over the region in all its splendor,

01:05but even here in Balderschwang you can clearly feel that things are changing.

01:1320 years ago we still had 150 operating days in the ski area, and now we have 100.

01:24Unlike in other regions of the Alps, no ski slopes have had to close here yet,

01:29but the brown shade of the southern slopes is unmistakable.

01:33Balderschwang is prepared to make artificial snow on 80% of its slopes.

01:41In Bolzano, a city in south Tyrol in northern Italy,

01:45scientists at the URAC Research Institute are studying the effects of climate change on the Alps.

01:54Snowfall in the entire alpine region has decreased drastically, especially since the 1980s.

02:00Until the 80s, overall, the average seasonal fresh snow was more or less the same,

02:09while after the 80s, due to this strong increase of the temperature,

02:15the fresh snow started to be less and less.

02:22We head to the measuring station in the mountains near Bolzano.

02:25Michele Bozzoli and a team of researchers investigated the amount of snowfall in the Alps between 1920 and 2020.

02:33They analysed weather data from the archives as well as 46 measuring stations around the wider alpine region.

02:41In the last 100 years we have lost more than 30% of the snow.

02:46It means that there will be less natural snow in the future,

02:51and so the ski area located below 1,000-1,500 meters will experience less snow.

03:02One thing is certain, less snow will mean big changes in winter tourism.

03:10We've made changes in many areas, and if now put the winter experience in the foreground,

03:15that is, snow tourism, we've also extended the winter hiking trail

03:20so that we can switch between winter sports and the winter experience in general.

03:28Some ski areas are fighting it with all their might,

03:31while others, like Balderschwang, are adapting to the reality of the situation.

03:35The sooner, the better.

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