Saturday, February 21, 2004

It was interesting running across this newspaper article on the possible demise of the ski industry in Utah as a function of global warming.[tingilinde] The ski areas mentioned in the article as involved in lobbying efforts are the ones at lowest elevations in Utah. That makes sense, except that they are likely to be the ones that use most energy because of snowmaking. Snowmaking requires a lot of energy to pump water and compress air for the snow guns. Also, some of those areas (Park City, Deer Valley, Canyons) have the largest real estate developments, again not the best way to save energy, as many of those houses and condos are oversized and have huge windows for fashion's sake. It is well known that most ski areas focus on real estate anyway, so their pleadings are mighty suspect. On my backcountry outing in Utah last month, I noticed again the contrast between the overbuild, low-elevation Park City and Canyons, which were not located for the best snow conditions anyway, and higher-elevation, wilder areas like Solitude and Alta. Finally, the high-elevation areas there as well as most areas in Tahoe close in the Spring for lack of customers, not lack of snow. In summary, of course global warming is a matter of grave concern for everyone and not only for skiers, but the these ski areas are not the most convincing advocates for action given the contradictions between their words and their actions. 5:50:00 PM