<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/thin-white-strips-on-brown-slopes-manufactured-ski-seasons-are-fuelling-the-climate-problem/>
"Thin white strips of snow scar the mostly brown slopes of Front Valley in
Kosciuszko National Park. Spraying those 16–18 white strips likely consumed
several megawatt-hours of electricity – in the order of 4–7 MWh – for that one
Front Valley slope, as mostly fossil‑fuelled snow cannons dumped roughly a few
tonnes of CO₂ into the atmosphere (my calculations).
This is the new “winter” in a warming climate: a fossil-powered illusion of
snow, sprayed over fragile alpine ecosystems inside Kosciuszko National Park.
The long-running Three Mile Dam record shows that average peak snow depth in
the Australian Alps has already fallen by around 40 centimetres since the
1950s, with shorter seasons and fewer cold days.
Kosciuszko is public land, protected for its natural and cultural values, yet
resort operations are increasingly locked into high-energy, high-emissions
snowmaking, just to stay marginally viable.
These are private operators, but their choices about energy‑intensive
snowmaking are authorised by public agencies on public land.
That may be commercially rational, but it is not compatible with the park’s
role in climate mitigation, or with Australia’s stated climate targets.
National parks are supposed to be front-line responses to climate change, not
showcases for energy-intensive recreations that deepen the problem."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
