European Ski Resorts Rely Heavily on Snowmaking

The winter sports industry faces an uncertain future as the weather conditions it depends on have become less and less reliable in recent years. Rising global temperatures shorten snow seasons, raise the snow line and make natural snowfall more erratic, forcing many lower-altitude resorts to rely heavily on artificial snow, which is costly and water‑intensive.

Many ski areas in the European Alps have already reacted to the changing environment, investing heavily into snowmaking infrastructure in recent years to ensure that the winter season remains long enough and slopes can be kept open and in fair condition through extended periods without natural snowfall. As our chart shows, Italy and Austria are leading in this respect, with 90 and 75 percent of skiable acreage covered by snowmaking in 2024. In the United States, snowmaking only extends to 20 percent of skiable acreage, likely explained by the fact that the base elevation of flagship destinations in states like Colorado and Utah is higher than many Alpine resorts, which are often centered around relatively low valley towns.

A rule of thumb in the industry says that a ski area need at least 100 days per winter with sufficient snow cover to be economically viable, which is why many resorts fall back on snowmaking to extend the period they can operate in. While it is a proven way of keeping ski areas viable in changing climate, critics argue that snowmaking will only exacerbate the problem in the long term, as it is water and energy intensive, worsening the environmental footprint of the winter sports industry. Moreover, even snowmaking requires certain weather conditions to work. Current systems need a temperature of at least minus 3 degrees Celsius (around 27 degrees F) to make firm and durable snow, which is why many resorts produce more snow than they need during cold periods to store it for later use, often over the summer – a practice known as snowfarming.