The winter of 2025 brings further challenges for skiers and mountain hotel owners. High temperatures, no snow and unpredictable weather make many slopes empty or function to a limited extent. More and more resorts scope for modern technologies specified as snow factoriesTo save the season.
The winter period began for ski resorts highly hard. Snow is simply a cure, and where the routes have managed to run, their dimension is importantly limited. The Szrenica-Ski Arena presently operates only 1.5 km of routes with more than 10 km available normally. The problem besides concerns another popular locations.
From the data of the website skiinfo.pl it appears that in many places in Poland Only 50-70% of routes are activeand any centres have not started the period at all. The average snow cover in many regions is just 10-50 cm, which means that Just a fewer warmer days to make the conditions on the slopes unacceptable.
This is not an isolated situation – akin problems are besides reported ski resorts in the Alps. advanced temperatures make many routes unusable even in places that were inactive a warrant of good skiing conditions a fewer years ago.
Faced with hard weather conditions ski resorts in Poland focus on innovative solutions. 1 is technology snow factories, allowing the production of artificial snow even at affirmative temperatures.
How does the snow mill work?
This modern device uses advanced technologies that let snow production even at +20°C. It does not require conventional snow cannon snowmaking, which means that centres can make perfect conditions for skiing regardless of weather.
An example is Central Sports Centre (COS) in Duszniki-Zdrójwho invested in the snow mill to ensure appropriate conditions for the organisation of sports competitions and ski season.
– Without this technology many slopes would be closed and the organisation of ski competitions would be impossible – says Paweł Sibik, head of sports facilities at COS, in an interview with WP Finance.
Similar solutions are already applied in another centres, specified as Green, Karpacz and Świeradów-Drójwhich besides endure from snow deficiency.
Is artificial snow the future of skiing?
Experts are alerting the problem to deepen. Climate change makes winters warmer and shorter, which means that ski resorts can no longer trust solely on natural snowfalls.
Artificial snow – is that a good solution?
It's resistant to warming. – it does not melt as fast as natural snow.
Allows an extension of the season – regardless of temperature and precipitation.
It is simply a rescue for the ski industrywho can face a major crisis without him.
However, this is not a faultless solution. Artificial snow production is expensive, a The request for water and electricity is huge. The centres must so accurately calculate whether specified investments are profitable for them.
Snow to spare? Centres invest in snow storage
Some ski resorts go even further – alternatively of producing snow on an ongoing basis, make snow storage, i.e. peculiar systems allowing storage of produced snow for subsequent seasons.
This is simply a solution that allows you to accumulate snow in cool places and usage it erstwhile weather conditions do not favour skiing. Although this technology is comparatively fresh in Poland, it already works successfully in Scandinavian countries.
Will skiing in Poland last without artificial snow?
Current atmospheric conditions show that Without modern technologies, the skiing manufacture will have serious problems. In the following years we can anticipate that more and more centres in Poland will start investing in snow factories and snow warehousesto guarantee a unchangeable functioning regardless of climate change.
On 1 side is a chance to extend the period and keep the profitability of ski resorts, of the another part – question of the environmental and economical costs of specified solutions.
Polish ski resorts face hard weather conditions – snow is little than in erstwhile years.
More and more resorts invest in snow factories, which let to keep ski trails despite deficiency of rainfall.
Experts indicate that skiing in Poland may require fresh technologies specified as snow retention to last in warmer climates.
Artificial snow production is simply a major cost and ecological challenge, but for many centres it is the only option.
Everything indicates that Ski seasons in Poland will be increasingly dependent on technology in the future, and natural snow can become a luxury.
More here:
Skiing in a crisis. The slopes are empty. No snow
