{"id":11497,"date":"2016-11-04T16:31:21","date_gmt":"2016-11-04T20:31:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/climate-change-is-sending-ski-area-operators-sliding-down-the-slopes-how-blackcomb-whistler-innovates-to-stay-ahead-of-the-slush\/"},"modified":"2016-11-04T16:31:21","modified_gmt":"2016-11-04T20:31:21","slug":"slippery-slope-climate-change-is-melting-away-skiing-business-how-whistler-blackcomb-innovates-to-stay-ahead-of-the-slush","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/slippery-slope-climate-change-is-melting-away-skiing-business-how-whistler-blackcomb-innovates-to-stay-ahead-of-the-slush\/","title":{"rendered":"Slippery slope: Climate change is melting away skiing business \u2013 how Whistler Blackcomb innovates to stay ahead of the slush"},"content":{"rendered":"

The UNEP has cited the winter tourism industry \u2013 particularly the ski industry \u2013 as one of the most vulnerable industries to the impacts of climate change [1].<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n

To name only a few examples of the effects of the global warming, ski area operators are experiencing decreasing areas of snow cover, less snowfall, melting glaciers, and shorter snow seasons. According to the Climate Change Report of the IPCC, the snow cover area in the Northern Hemisphere during March-April is expected to decrease every decade by 1-2% [2]. Simultaneously, the snow season is expected to be shortened by more than 5 days every decade [2].<\/p>\n

These alarming figures become even more worrisome when considering the direct implications this can have on the ski industry. Exhibit 1 shows the effects of rising temperatures on the future natural snow-reliability of ski areas in the European alps [3]. Even if it would be possible to limit the global warming to 2\u00b0 C (3.6\u00b0 F) by 2050, the number of naturally snow-reliable ski areas would drop by 34% from 609 to 404 with Germany being the most sensitive of the countries in the European alps region (>80% drop) [3].<\/p>\n

\"exhibit-1\"<\/a>Exhibit 1: Own illustration, derived Abegg et al. [3]<\/p>\n

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The outlook in the U.S. is unfortunately comparably drastic: \u201cWithout intervention, winter temperatures are projected to warm an additional 4 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century [\u2026]. Snow depths could decline in the west by 25 to 100 percent. The length of the snow season in the northeast will be cut in half.\u201d<\/i><\/em> [4]<\/p>\n

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Ski area operators can follow multiple corporate adaptation strategies leveraging various technological and business practices to react to recent climate change developments.<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n

The different adaptation measures can be subsumed under 3 main strategies, of which Whistler Blackcomb (WB) applies all of them. They are summarized below in Exhibit 2.<\/p>\n

\"exhibit-2\"<\/a>Exhibit 2: Own illustration, derived from Hoffmann et al. [5], Elsasser & B\u00fcrki [6], and Scott & McBoyle [7]<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0<\/i> I. Maintain and protect current business<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/p>\n

When remaining within the current business, ski area operators apply various technological measures to react to the developments initiated by climate change. The most familiar climate adaptation is the use of artificial snow machines<\/i><\/em>. Although snowmaking can entail huge investment and operating costs (~US$ 600,000 investment costs + US$ 18,000-30,000 annual operating costs per kilometer of ski-slope [6]), economic benefits often outweigh the high costs by extending the average ski season by 55-120 days [7].<\/p>\n

Other secondary adaptation measures include:<\/p>\n