The U.S. ski industry has lost more than US$5 billion over the past two decades due to human-caused climate change, according to a new study.
The U.S. ski industry has lost more than US$5 billion over the past two decades due to human-caused climate change, according to a new study.
The study from University of Waterloo and University of Innsbruck researchers compared ski seasons in winters from the 1960s to 1970s with the last two decades, from 2000 to 2019. The analysis determined the average ski season has been shortened by five to seven days, and lost skier visits combined with increased snowmaking have cost the U.S. ski industry an average of US$252 million per year.
"We are probably past the era of peak ski seasons," said Dr. Daniel Scott, professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management, part of Canada's largest Faculty of Environment. "Average ski seasons in all U.S. regional markets are projected to get shorter in the decades ahead under all emission futures. How much shorter depends on the ability of all countries to deliver on their Paris Climate Agreement emission reduction commitments and whether global warming temperatures are held below two degrees Celsius."
Read more at: University of Waterloo
