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The snow fell late and sparsely. Even in the Gotthard massif, the otherwise snowy region, Mother Hulda has only hesitantly sugar-coated the mighty peaks and stony valleys in the past few weeks. This year it is less than ever.
Sven ZauggEditor Sunday view
The snow fell late and sparsely. Even in the Gotthard massif, the otherwise snowy region, Mother Hulda has only hesitantly sugar-coated the mighty peaks and stony valleys in the past few weeks. This year it is less than ever.
Carlo Danioth, who has been making the slopes in Andermatt safe for 35 years, shakes his head. “You can still see every boulder as if it were autumn.” Well, just make the best of it.
Andermatt UR is symptomatic of the winter sports dilemma: climate change, water shortages, nature conservation, a dwindling number of guests, a lack of electricity, price wars: times are tough for snow sports and the forecasts are bleak.
December marks the start of the season
And yet it should start soon. December traditionally marks the start of the season. “The whole area is open at Christmas,” promises Ignaz Zopp (55), who has been in charge of the Andermatt-Sedrun ski area since January.
Everything must be ready. Whether there is snow or not: sports outfitters and winter destinations are stimulating the market as early as possible. Among other things, with ski races that follow closely after the Indian summer.
Like in Valais, where Olympic champion Didier Défago (45) drew a downhill run between Zermatt and Cervinia (I) in the snow. Nothing came of the premiere in October: lack of snow prevented the ski party.
Snow cover would be at its thickest in April
Christoph Marty (54), climatologist at the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF in Davos GR, speaks of false promises – and a paradox: “Everyone wants to go skiing at Christmas and in April, when the snow cover is thickest, nobody has more Desire. As a result, a lot of energy is used for snowmaking in November.”
In Andermatt, half of the 120 kilometers of pistes can be covered with snow using snow cannons and lances. Artificial snow is the key to the start of the season. This requires energy and water – one is expensive, the other rare.
The construction of one kilometer of snow-covered slopes costs one million Swiss francs. The operating costs for artificial snow are an additional CHF 20,000 to 30,000 per kilometer per season.
prices explode
Because of the rapid rise in electricity prices, the costs for operating the systems and snowmaking have exploded in Andermatt, as elsewhere: from CHF 1.2 million to CHF 2 million per season. And because water is limited in the mountains, Zopp and his team have to be economical with the precious water.
“We mustn’t waste a drop, otherwise some slopes will remain dry,” says Zopp. timing is everything. It has to stay cold, otherwise the expensively produced artificial white would immediately melt away. “With the available contingent, only selective snowmaking is currently possible,” says Zopp – after all: without snowmaking, according to the boss, you could close the shop right away.
«Autumn skiing makes little sense»
No snow without water, no customers without snow, no money, no work.
Zopp says thoughtfully: «Of course we also realize that autumnal skiing probably makes little sense in the future. We are considering moving the start of the season from October to November or even December.” However, nothing is ready for a verdict.
The 20 largest cable car companies make investments in the three-digit million range every year. In order to secure ski operations, renew existing systems and make artificial snow more efficient, Zopp also wants to invest a further CHF 110 million in the coming years.
But not all mountain railways have a financially strong investor at their side. Every third cable car can no longer cope with the upcoming investments on their own – and only survives thanks to subsidies from the public sector or from private investors.
You see yourself as systemically important
In Andermatt, however, the world’s largest ski resort operator, Vail Resorts, took over the majority of Samih Sawiris (65) in the Andermatt-Sedrun ski resort this year – and let millions bubble. Zopp speaks of a “stroke of luck”. After all, one is “systemically relevant” for the region. A phrase that the industry repeats like a mantra.
Not without good reason: throughout Switzerland, winter tourism generates around five billion francs in income per year and is an important economic sector for the population in the Alpine valleys. Every fifth franc in the mountain areas is generated by tourism. Every fourth person in the Alps works for tourism – directly or indirectly. In mountain regions such as Valais and Graubünden, winter tourism accounts for more than ten percent of gross domestic product.
Ski season is likely to be almost a month shorter
However, the environment is unimpressed by the “systemic relevance”. Climatologist Christoph Marty: “With global warming, the ski season should be half a month to a month shorter than today.” A significant trend towards winters with little snow can be observed, particularly at altitudes below 1,300 meters. The snow cover is also becoming increasingly thin at medium and high altitudes.
What Mother Hulda can’t do, Technoalpin’s snowmakers can now conjure up onto the slopes. The company from Bozen (I), the world’s leading manufacturer of snowmaking systems, launches around 2,500 snow cannons every year, which are used from Aspen (USA) to Andermatt.
Martin Hofer (42), a member of the Technoalpin board of directors, rejoices that Switzerland is a particularly attractive market: “Most of the Swiss ski areas are snowing either in stages or not across the board. In this respect, the systems are often not yet at their limit in terms of possible performance.» While 54 percent of the slopes here have snow-making facilities, in Austria it is already 70 percent.
Objections and Complaints
However, building a snowmaking system is not child’s play: financing, permits, energy, water – the road is long and rocky. “It’s not uncommon for eight years to pass between planning and realizing a major project worth millions,” explains Hofer.
In Switzerland, the construction of a snowmaking system can also take a long time for other reasons. This is due to objections and complaints. Some major projects have been put on hold for up to a decade.
That’s how it was in Elm GL: The future of the small ski area was to be secured with the promising “Futuro” project. A reservoir, three pumping stations, 9.5 kilometers of pipelines and 110 to 130 snow-making machines were planned. The new slopes should have gone into operation in 2020/21. Technoalpin would have provided material and expertise. Would have …
But WWF, Pro Natura and Birdlife threw a spanner in the works for the million dollar project. The nature conservation associations dragged the project up to the administrative court. And this stated: The expansion and the associated intensification of ski operations would lead to the wild animals living in the no-hunting area being disturbed in their habitats for an indefinite period of time. The project is non-zonal. Return to Sender.
tricky situation
Phone call to Stefan Elmer, head of the Elm sports railways. «We don’t want to talk about the project; we refuse a visit.” They don’t want to add fuel to the fire, the situation is too delicate. Perhaps more could be said in the spring. Maybe.
It is possible that at some point there will no longer be a need for snowmaking systems. Namely when it is too warm in Elm or earlier, when nobody wants to ski anymore.
This scenario, as absurd as it sounds, could become reality, says Laurent Vanat. He is the author of the International Report on Snow and Mountain Tourism.
1.5 million overnight stays lost
Between 2010 and 2020 alone, the winter sports resorts lost 1.5 million overnight stays. One reason: Foreign guests are increasingly staying away from the Swiss Alps. The average number of foreign guests on the slopes has fallen below the 40 percent mark. Vanat: “In addition, the Swiss ski industry is confronted with the same demographic problem as domestic and foreign customers. Baby boomers are retiring and the new generations are less enthusiastic about sports.” The long-term trend: fewer and fewer guests on the slopes.
You imagined: It’s winter and nobody goes skiing. On the other hand, snow cannons will no longer help.