Intrawest: In Search of Snow
Will climate change melt Intrawest's snowy ambitions?
As the largest owner and operator of destination resort properties in North America, Intrawest Resorts Holdings, Inc. is very concerned about the effect of climate change on its operations.[1] With stakes in ski resorts from Zihuatanejo, Mexico to Blue Mountain, Ontario, Intrawest faces two critical operational challenges.[2] First, in the face of warming temperatures, is Intrawest operating the right resorts in the right places? Second, within those resorts, how much should Intrawest rely on popular, but expensive, climate change mitigation techniques like snowmaking operations?
Climate Change and the Ski Industry
It is easy to see how climate change could have a significant impact on the ski resort industry: during the ski season, warmer temperatures result in shorter winters and less snow.[3] The fewer days a resort can be operational, the greater the negative impact to Intrawest’s bottom line. During the off-season, a higher frequency of extreme weather events, such as droughts and forest fires, increase the risk of costly damage to land, infrastructure, and facilities.[4]
Operations at Steamboat Springs
Operations at Steamboat Springs, Colorado, the premier property in Intrawest’s portfolio, epitomize the challenges of running a large mountain resort in an era of increasingly warm average temperatures.[5] Steamboat opens to skiers after enough snowfall has accumulated to form a sufficient ‘base’ that is further augmented by snowmaking operations to ensure accessibility from the base area to lift lines and full snow coverage of some trails.[6] Early snowmaking efforts are focused on filling gaps in the base and safely covering natural obstacles like rocks and tree stumps.[7]
Steamboat historically has achieved a sufficient base by mid-November allowing for full operation of its gondola and down-mountain lifts.[8] As temperatures drop and snow accumulates, the resort gradually opens access to all three of its interconnected mountains, reaching full operating capacity on its 16 lift lines and 165 named trails by Christmas.[9] Steamboat traditionally operates until late spring when the base is too depleted to support safe skiing and continued lift operations.[10]
In recent years, a lack of snow has pushed the resort’s opening day into late November or early December resulting in cancelled ski trips, lost revenue and significant idle time for seasonal employees.[11] Delays in establishing a sufficient base limit snowmaking operations and delay the opening of up-mountain trails and lifts. Cascading delays in opening trails result in significant overcrowding on the accessible parts of the resort, straining the normal operations and maintenance cycle of the gondola and down-mountain lifts and trails.[12] Increased snowmaking is required to repair overused trails, limiting snowmaking operations in other areas of the resort.[13] Without a significant snowfall, this pattern of disrupted operations continues until the season’s end.[14]
Seeking Proactive Strategies
The most ubiquitous strategy to mitigate climate change risk is increased installation of snowmaking equipment like that used in Steamboat.[15] 95% of resorts worldwide engaged in snowmaking and snowmaking has been found to extend the average ski season by between 55-120 days.[16] Technological advances in snowmaking have reduced labor costs by enabling resorts to purchase ‘snow guns’ that automatically adjust air and water flows and engage when weather conditions allow operation.[17] This automation is increasingly valuable as warmer temperatures may only dip below freezing for a few hours a night.[18]
However, while snowmaking offers an invaluable substitute to natural snow, the use of this technology requires significant capital investment and is operationally limited by temperature and humidity—factors significantly affected by climate change.[19] The practice of snowmaking also requires a considerable amount of water.[20] Operations at a resort like Steamboat use millions of gallons of water each year, often at significant cost.[21] Such operations are likely to come under increased scrutiny and regulation as fresh water lakes and reservoirs are depleted by longer, drier summers.
Intrawest has also sought to reduce the challenges caused by climate change by implementing night skiing at Steamboat, spreading some of the demand from skiers across increased operational hours.[22] While effective at reducing long daytime waits at lifts and overcrowding on trails, night skiing presents its own operational challenges as snowmaking equipment cannot be operated, lift maintenance cannot be performed and trails cannot be repaired while skiers are on the mountain.[23]
With operational challenges like those at Steamboat becoming the new normal, Intrawest must consider whether it is operating resorts in the right locations. Delayed autumn snowfall and earlier spring snowmelt are projected to decrease snowpacks and snow accumulation in much of North America over the next 30 years.[24] However, in certain regions of Alaska and Canada, winter precipitation is projected to increase and the additional snowfall could make up for a shorter snow season.[25] Given the expense and problems associated with its current strategies to combat climate change, Intrawest should consider investing in new resorts in areas less vulnerable to climate change and divesting resorts with major climate-related operational challenges.[26]
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[1] “Intrawest – A Leader in Experiential Destination Resorts.” Intrawest – A Leader in Experiential Destination Resorts. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[2] Ibid.
[3] McGill, Daniel D.D. The Impact of Climate Change on Ski Resort Operations and Development: Opportunities and Threats. Department of Urban Studies and Planning, M.I.T. Sept, 2007. Pg 5.
[4] McGill, Daniel D.D. The Impact of Climate Change on Ski Resort Operations and Development: Opportunities and Threats. Department of Urban Studies and Planning, M.I.T. Sept, 2007. Pg 5-6
[5] “Intrawest – A Leader in Experiential Destination Resorts.” Intrawest – A Leader in Experiential Destination Resorts. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[6] “Steamboat Mountain Stats.” Steamboat Mountain Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[7] Ibid.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Ibid.
[10] “Steamboat Mountain Stats.” Steamboat Mountain Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[11] “Steamboat Mountain Stats.” Steamboat Mountain Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[12] Ibid.
[13] “Steamboat Mountain Stats.” Steamboat Mountain Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[14] McGill, Daniel D.D. The Impact of Climate Change on Ski Resort Operations and Development: Opportunities and Threats. Department of Urban Studies and Planning, M.I.T. Sept, 2007. Pg. 49.
[15] McGill, Daniel D.D. The Impact of Climate Change on Ski Resort Operations and Development: Opportunities and Threats. Department of Urban Studies and Planning, M.I.T. Sept, 2007. Pg. 49.
[16] Ibid.
[17] Ibid. Pg. 50.
[18] Ibid. Pg. 50.
[19] Ibid. Pg. 49.
[20] Ibid. Pg. 49.
[21] “Intrawest – A Leader in Experiential Destination Resorts.” Intrawest – A Leader in Experiential Destination Resorts. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[22] “Steamboat Mountain Stats.” Steamboat Mountain Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
[23] Ibid.
[24] McGill, Daniel D.D. The Impact of Climate Change on Ski Resort Operations and Development: Opportunities and Threats. Department of Urban Studies and Planning, M.I.T. Sept, 2007. Pg. 49.
[25] McGill, Daniel D.D. The Impact of Climate Change on Ski Resort Operations and Development: Opportunities and Threats. Department of Urban Studies and Planning, M.I.T. Sept, 2007. Pg. 43.
[26] Ibid. Pg. 9.
As a Colorado native and an avid skier, this post hits particularly close to home. I also struggle with the idea of more snowmaking. Especially in areas that are drought prone such as California, I imagine snowmaking consumes a massive amount of water and wonder if there are any innovative approaches to mitigate these. Your point about humidity was interesting as I did not know that was a factor to snowmaking. I’d like to better understand ways that we could artificially reduce humidity and temperatures in the snowmaking equipment to make it more efficient. Also, are there ways to recycle water in snowmaking devices so we are not tapping into freshwater deposits? I agree they should continue to expand to other areas not yet affected by climate change. Vail Resorts has done a good job of this by acquiring resorts in other geographies. Also, I think the resorts prone to climate change related operational issues should focus on expanding their offerings during the off season (i.e. mountain biking, golf, etc) to boost their bottom line.
As someone who lives to ski, this post is extremely relevant to some of my most frequent nightmares. The result of shorter seasons has been an almost universal increase in prices by resorts trying to make up for fewer skiers skiing on less snow during a shorter season each year. Prices for lift tickets, lodging, food and entertainment in and around ski areas have skyrocketed in the last decade, and they’ll continue to increase as ski seasons continue to shorten. As prices have increased, skiers have been even less incentivized to give these resorts their patronage, as they’re often paying more to ski on crappier snow. I agree with Gabby’s comment regarding expanding other activities year-round; many mountains offer great outdoor activities during non-ski seasons, and while the awareness and traffic have not caught up to expectations, it may be the resorts’ only hopes.
This is a very interesting post. Intrawest and the ski industry more broadly are undoubtedly feeling the acute externalities of warming temperatures and volatile weather patterns. I would be interested to learn more about the water and natural resource usage required to use snow-making machines. Ski resorts are becoming more vocal about lobbying lawmakers for climate change measures, but it seems hypocritical to me for them to engage in practices that worsen the problem just to extend the season on the margin. Do you see a public relations or credibility issue for the industry?