How do ski resorts save energy and CO₂?
Every business needs energy – it’s not just ski resorts. Even lying on the sofa and streaming a TV series uses a fair bit of electricity. Skiing operations consume around 18 kWh per day per guest. Nevertheless, ski resort operators are doing a great deal to keep energy consumption and CO₂ emissions as low as possible.
For example, ski resorts use precise snow depth measurements to make the best possible use of the existing snow and to determine their exact requirements. Measuring snow depth via GPS reduces the energy used for snowmaking by around 10 per cent, whilst also improving the quality of the slopes.
Use of renewable energy
Since 2020, the four largest ski resorts have been sourcing green electricity. During the 2021/22 winter season, the proportion of green electricity totalled 87.6 per cent. Sourcing green electricity significantly reduces the net emissions associated with electricity consumption at the facilities covered by the survey.
A 6,000-square-metre photovoltaic system has been in operation at Remmeswiese in Winterberg since 2009. It generates electricity from solar energy and feeds it into the grid, thereby making a measurable contribution to renewable electricity generation in the region. With an average annual solar yield of 245,000 kWh, the calculated CO₂ saving amounts to approximately 146,000 kilograms. The system cost 1 million euros.
The project was financed by a community energy co-operative founded on the initiative of the ski lift operators.
There are further, smaller photovoltaic systems on many of the roofs of service buildings in the ski resorts. The Winterberg ski lift network has nine such systems. In 2018, for example, they generated a total of 609,600 kWh.
When it comes to floodlighting, modern technology can help ski lift operators save energy. The first slope to feature energy-saving and long-lasting LED technology is at Köhlerhagen. Others followed in the Winterberg ski lift circuit.
Energy-efficient snowmaking
Snow production requires less energy** than is often assumed. In traditional snowmaking, the cold is not generated artificially but utilised through natural cold spells. Energy is primarily required for pumps, compressed air and blowers.
Modern snow guns are now significantly more efficient than earlier generations of equipment. New propeller-type machines produce around twice as much snow as they did 20 years ago whilst using the same amount of energy; snow lances produce around three times as much as models from 15 years ago. That is why lift operators in the Sauerland Winter Sports Arena are continually replacing older equipment with new models. Wherever possible, snow lances are used. They require less energy than propeller-type machines, but suffer greater losses due to snow drift.
Snow management
Regardless of whether it is natural snow or technically produced, snow is a valuable raw material that requires special treatment in order to withstand the stresses of skiing, temperatures and weather conditions. This includes proper slope grooming. Rolling the slopes every evening plays a major role in this. Snow groomers are experts who work with a great deal of knowledge and experience. This is because the snow cover needs to be treated in a way that is adapted to the respective temperature and weather conditions in order to achieve an optimum balance between slope quality and durability.
Appropriate preparatory work is also part of the resource-conserving use of snow. The summer management of the slopes plays a decisive role in how quickly the lift operators can offer their guests a well-prepared snow surface. Even meadows without hollows or gullies are necessary in order to be able to produce a continuously good skiable slope even with little snow.
HVO fuel
Another measure to reduce CO₂ emissions is the use of HVO100. At the Winterberg ski lift complex, the snow groomers are powered by HVO100. Using HVO100 instead of fossil diesel can reduce the fuel-related CO₂ emissions of the snow groomers during operation by up to 90 per cent. The HVO fuel sourced is produced from waste materials from the paper industry.
These and other measures are helping to make operations progressively lower in emissions, more energy-efficient and more resource-conserving.