Is skiing an obsolete model, outdated, harmful to the environment and backward-looking? Do you have to justify or be ashamed of a ski holiday these days? Or can winter sports also be practiced sustainably?
In the entire Alpine region, people are currently thinking about the future of skiing. After all, for many people, their livelihoods are at risk if nothing is done to combat climate change. Since October 2015, Europe’s highest photovoltaic system has been located in the glacier ski area of the Tyrolean Pitztal. The efficiency of the solar system is much higher at an altitude of almost 3000 meters than in the valley. By reflecting off the snow, about 40 percent more energy can be generated, which, due to the short distance, reaches its recipient with almost no loss. The system covers more than a third of the total energy consumption of the ski area – including the cable cars, gastronomy and snow production. Not far away, in the Tyrolean Paznauntal, the pipe system of the snowmaking system has been used for the production of green electricity for years. When snow is no longer being produced, the water is collected on the mountain and drained through the snow-making system’s pipes. The mountain railways in See thus produce four times more energy than they consume themselves. Such a system is also in operation in Davos in Switzerland. And in St. Anton am Arlberg, two artificial mountain lakes have ensured that the town has been self-sufficient in power supply since 2006. In addition, snow groomers with snow gauges are deployed throughout the Alps. This saves more than ten percent of technically produced snow, which reduces the need for energy and water. And now there are even electric and hydrogen-powered snow groomers.