{"id":42493,"date":"2022-01-26T04:17:17","date_gmt":"2022-01-26T11:17:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/as-snowmaking-becomes-more-common-some-question-the-use-of-energy-and-water\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:07:38","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T09:07:38","slug":"as-snowmaking-becomes-more-common-some-question-the-use-of-energy-and-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/as-snowmaking-becomes-more-common-some-question-the-use-of-energy-and-water\/","title":{"rendered":"As snowmaking becomes more common, some question the use of energy and water"},"content":{"rendered":"
Ski resorts have invested millions in more efficient snow guns<\/div>\n

\"A
A machine blows snow at Vail Mountain Resort Dec. 29 in Vail. Newer snowmaking technology is allowing ski areas to be more efficient with energy and water usage as climate change continues to threaten snowpack levels. (Brittany Peterson\/Associated Press)<\/span>AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

DENVER \u2013 The sight can be jarring during extreme drought: snowmaking guns lined up on a mountainside, blasting precious crystal flakes on a ski run while the rest of the land goes thirsty.<\/p>\n

Snowpack in the U.S. West has decreased by about 20% in the last century, making man-made snow more vital each year to opening ski resorts and fueling ski town economies as they head into an uncertain future.<\/p>\n

\"In
In this undated photo provided by Aspen Skiing Co., an art piece titled, "The Melted Gondola," sits atop Aspen Mountain ski area to remind visitors of the urgent need to address climate change. (Mark Carolan\/Aspen Skiing Co. via Associated Press)<\/span>AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As the effects of drought and climate change increasingly hit home, the ski industry has invested millions of dollars in more efficient snowmaking systems amid questions about whether the practice is a wise use of energy and water.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are impacts. They’re regrettable. We\u2019d rather not have to make snow,\u201d said Auden Schendler, senior vice president of sustainability at Aspen Skiing Co. in Colorado. \u201cBut our regional economy and the economies of all ski towns depend on your ski resort operating. And so this is a necessary evil.”<\/p>\n

Snowmaking has been around since at least the 1950s, but the practice became more widespread in the West after a severe drought in the late 1970s. According to the Colorado-based National Ski Areas Association, about 87% of the 337 U.S. alpine resorts the trade group represents have snowmaking capabilities.<\/p>\n

Many resorts draw water from nearby streams or reservoirs and typically use compressed air and electricity to blow snow into piles on the slopes when it’s cold. Those piles are then spread into a base layer that allows resorts to open in the early winter and to stay open through the spring.<\/p>\n

An analysis of most of the ski resorts in Colorado found snowmaking diverts about 1.5 billion gallons of water per year in the state, said Kevin Rein, state engineer and director of the Colorado Division of Water Resources. That’s enough to fill about 2,200 Olympic-sized swimming pools.<\/p>\n

\"Ian
Ian Sidwell adjusts a hose at Vail Mountain Resort on Dec. 29 in Vail. Newer snowmaking technology is allowing ski areas to be more efficient with energy and water usage as climate change continues to threaten snowpack levels. (Brittany Peterson\/Associated Press)<\/span>AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It sounds like a lot, but Rein said snowmaking accounts for less than one-tenth of 1% of the water that is diverted in the state, with agriculture drawing about 85%. Moreover, about 80% of the water used in snowmaking returns to the watershed when the snow melts in the spring.<\/p>\n

Snowmaking is recognized by the courts as a \u201cbeneficial use\u201d in Colorado, said Rein, whose agency regulates the process. \u201cIt\u2019s part of our tourism, it\u2019s part of what we do in Colorado.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Patrick Belmont, a professor and head of the Department of Watershed Sciences at Utah State University, said it’s important to note that a lot of energy is used during snowmaking, and a lot of water is lost through evaporation and sublimation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not insignificant, especially in a place where we don\u2019t have a whole lot of water to begin with. … Every drop of water matters,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Belmont, an avid skier who recently published a wide-ranging study on snowmaking and climate change, also is concerned that man-made snow, which is denser and melts later than the real thing, can affect stream flows.<\/p>\n

\"Snowmakers
Snowmakers Kate Schifani, left, and Ryan Schultz review a snowmaking map at Vail Mountain on Dec. 29 in Vail. Newer snowmaking technology is allowing ski areas to be more efficient with energy and water usage as climate change continues to threaten snowpack levels. (Brittany Peterson\/Associated Press).<\/span>AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“There are a lot of fish that take their cues for things like when to spawn or when to do different things in their life based on how the flows are going up or down. So we\u2019re changing those types of natural cues for some of those organisms,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Ski resorts have made huge strides in becoming more efficient and environmentally friendly, said Schendler, of the Aspen Skiing Co. But he also recalled a time when they often didn’t pay much attention to weather forecasts, only to see the fruits of their labor melt in the warm afternoon sun.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne way the industry has gotten smarter is they said, \u2018Look, we\u2019re not going to make snow if it\u2019s not cold and if there\u2019s not a forecast for it to stay cold,” he said. “That sounds dumb and analog, but this industry is historically very analog.”<\/p>\n

Many resorts also have invested heavily in recent years to upgrade their snowmaking operations. Some have dug storage ponds to collect water in the spring when it’s abundant, while a few are eying the use of reclaimed wastewater.<\/p>\n

Colorado-based Vail Resorts, which owns 37 ski resorts in the U.S., Canada and Australia, announced during an earnings call in December a $3.6 million investment into its sustainability efforts this year, including making its snowmaking operations more energy efficient.<\/p>\n

Over the past few years, the company has upgraded more than 400 snow guns across its resorts to blast more snow with less energy in less time. Meanwhile, Breckenridge, which is owned by Vail Resorts and is one of the country’s largest and most popular ski areas, is getting 110 efficient snow guns.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I can make all the snow we need in a third the time, that\u2019s a huge energy savings. It\u2019s a huge labor savings,” said Kate Schifani, snowmaking manager at Colorado\u2019s Vail Mountain Resort.<\/p>\n

Vail’s modern snow guns can regulate water output and automatically shut down when the weather gets too warm \u2013 a major upgrade from older technology that required workers to monitor the temperature and manually turn off the system.<\/p>\n

Besides using water more efficiently, ski areas are tapping more renewable energy to power snow guns, which account for about 20% of a typical resort’s energy usage.<\/p>\n

\"Ian
Ian Sidwell adjusts a machine used to make snow at Vail Mountain Resort as snowboarders ride a lift Dec. 29 in Vail. Newer snowmaking technology is allowing ski areas to be more efficient with energy and water usage as climate change continues to threaten snowpack levels. (Brittany Peterson\/Associated Press)<\/span>AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The National Ski Areas Association’s decade-old \u201cClimate Challenge” program encourages resorts to inventory and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, as well as advocate for legislation to combat climate change.<\/p>\n

Since its inception, the voluntary program has cut emissions by about 129,300 tons, according to the group. Participating resorts also have purchased renewable energy that accounts for an additional reduction of about 242,500 tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Those are tiny amounts compared to the United States’ estimated 6 billion tons of greenhouse gases produced in 2021 \u2013 a total of about 32 minutes worth of the country’s carbon emissions \u2013 according to the independent Rhodium Group.<\/p>\n

But advocates say it\u2019s a start.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can do what we can in our own operations, but if there\u2019s going to be a future in outdoor recreation and a future for humanity just in general, we\u2019re going to need every kind of solution we can find,\u201d said Adrienne Saia Isaac, an NSAA spokeswoman. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to effect change now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Schendler, who warns that the ski industry is not on track to be viable beyond 2050, agrees.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe industry has historically responded to climate change by saying, \u2018We\u2019re going to clean our operations, we\u2019re going to do good snowmaking, and we\u2019re going to cut our carbon footprint,\u2019” he said. “That\u2019s awesome and noble and moral and good business, but it is not a solution to a global problem.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

resorts have invested millions in more efficient snow guns A machine blows snow at Vail Mountain Resort Dec. 29 in Vail. Newer snowmaking technology is allowing ski areas to be more efficient with energy and water usage as climate change continues to threaten snowpack levels. (Brittany Peterson\/Associated Press)AP DENVER \u2013 The sight can be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42494,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[378,431,1098,1030,28,295],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-42493","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-alpine-skiing","tag-business-general","tag-energy","tag-environment","tag-headlines","tag-water"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42493","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42493"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42493\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85358,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42493\/revisions\/85358"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42493"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=42493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}