Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Thank God for snow-making! (Part 2)

While I believe that its overall efficiency has increased by 50 to 75% over the last half-century (exact numbers are hard to come by), tt’s pretty obvious that snow-making requires large amounts of water, which can put a strain on local water resources, especially in arid regions. 

This get the attention of environmentalists, yet, much of the water isn’t wasted as it eventually returns to the watershed during the spring melt. Water needed to carpet a ski hill in snow remains relatively fixed from year to year, so there are only so many efficiency gains to be had. 

Compressing air is what really costs a lot and if the power is generated by non-renewable sources, contributes directly to global warming, not to mention the cost of infrastructure and its renewal to simply maintain it and keep up with technological advances in terms of efficiency. This is where in fact all the efforts have been placed by snow-gun equipment manufacturers. 

Environmentalists will also point at chemicals additives used to improve snow quality, that can have potential environmental impacts. As suggested, technology keeps on improving with more efficient snow guns using less water and energy to produce snow. A typical snow-making machine can produce anywhere from 1 to 10 tons of snow per hour. High-efficiency machines can produce even more under optimal conditions that is, when temperatures are below 28°F (-2°C) and humidity levels are low.

Under these conditions, machines can create denser, higher-quality snow. As for water usage, machines typically require about 1,000 gallons of water to produce one ton of snow. This can vary based on the machine's efficiency and the desired snow quality. It takes approximately 3.5 to 4.3 kWh of energy to produce one cubic meter of snow; however, this number can be as high as 14 kWh, or as low as 1 kWh per cubic meter of snow. 

Snow-making accounts for approximately 50% of the average American ski resort's energy costs, which amounts to about $500,000. Given the gradual raising of temperature and of the snow limit, worldwide, snow-making demand might in fact double by 2050 if not stopped earlier by environmental regulations. 

Still today, it seems that future gains in energy efficiency with the prevailing technologies will be incremental, and perhaps not cost effective for systems that have been recently updated. However, areas that have not yet adopted this technology could realize impressive gains in performance and energy efficiency. Ski area operators can choose from a wide selection of snow-making equipment to fit their unique terrain, regional weather patterns, and business plans. 

While snow-making has a significant environmental impact, technological advancements and a focus on sustainability are trying to mitigate these concerns. Continued research and development are crucial to further improve the efficiency and environmental friendliness of snow-making technologies and preventing ecologists to keep on threatening their use. 

In the meantime, skiers like me who can only ski groomed runs don’t have to ruin their brand new skis very early in the season!

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