Ski holidays in the Alps could become a thing of the past, scientists warn – as figures reveal snowfall has plummeted by a THIRD since 1920

It is one of the world’s most popular destinations for skiing and home to some of the most prestigious resorts.

But scientists warn that ski holidays in the Alps could soon become a thing of the past.

Scientists from Eurac Research found that snowfall plummeted by a third between 1920 and 2020.

In some regions, the situation is even more dire as records reveal a reduction of almost 50 per cent across southwestern slopes.

While the data extends back 100 years, snowfall levels only began to fall sharply from 1980 onwards.

The researchers note that this coincides with a sharp increase in average air temperatures around the world due to human-caused climate change.

In the worst-affected regions in the Southern Alps including Italy, Slovenia and Austria, these changes could threaten the future of winter sports.

Lead researcher Michele Bozzoli says: ‘The decrease in snow has an impact not only on winter sports, but also on all activities and processes that rely on water.’

There are growing concerns that skiing in the European Alps may become impossible as the number of days of snow cover reduces. This was the scene at the closed Dent-de-Vaulion ski lift on February 2 amid a lack of snow at altitudes below 1500m

With an estimated 400 million people visiting ski resorts around the world each year, snow is an absolutely vital part of the tourism economy.

If snow melts during the ski season between December and April, resorts have no choice but to run shorter, less profitable seasons.

Around the world, there is now a growing concern that climate change may make it impossible to keep the slopes open.

In their new study, researchers gathered a century of snowfall data from 46 sites in the Alps by combining modern weather station recordings with handwritten notes dating back to the start of the 20th century.

This has created the first comprehensive look at how snowfall has changed over the last 100 years.

Mr Bozzoli says: ‘There is a markedly negative trend in terms of fresh snowfall in the Alps with an overall decrease of about 34%.

‘In particular, a notable decrease was observed after 1980. This date also coincides with an equally sharp increase in temperatures.’

From 1980 onwards the mean air temperature recorded at the weather stations began to rapidly increase, reaching values of almost 1°C (1.8°F) above the 100-year average.

The fall reduction in snowfall across the Alps (left graph) from the 100-year average (dotted line) came alongside a sharp increase in mean air temperatures (right graph) which began in the 1980s due to human-caused climate change

Resorts at lower altitudes and in the warmer Southern areas of the Alps were worse affected as rising temperatures caused precipitation to fall as rain rather than snow. Pictured: Skiiers attempt to make the most of the conditions with the Lans en Vercors ski resort in France lacking snow on January 27

Those warmer temperatures mean that snow is unable to form at lower altitudes and precipitation falls as rain instead.

Despite an increase in overall precipitation, this means that annual snowfall has fallen sharply, especially in the warmer regions and lower altitudes.

The South-West and South-East regions showed an average loss of 4.9 per cent and 3.8 per cent every decade respectively.

The northern regions, meanwhile, showed a smaller but still worrying loss of 2.3 per cent per decade.

Mr Bozoli says: ‘The most negative trends concern locations below an altitude of 2,000 meters and are in the southern regions such as Italy, Slovenia and part of the Austrian Alps.’

At higher elevations, sufficiently cold temperatures mean that snowfall levels have largely remained consistent.

However, the data shows that temperatures have now risen so much in the southwestern and southeastern Alps that rain is frequently taking over snowfall even at higher elevations.

Previous studies have shown that climate change is putting a number of ski resorts around the world at serious risk of becoming snowless by the end of the century.

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Previous research suggests that ski resorts in the Australian Alps (pictured) could cease to be economically viable as the days of snow cover could fall below 100 days 

Earlier this year, researchers found that one in eight of the world’s ski resorts would have no snow from 2071-2100.

The worst affected region is predicted to be the Australian Alps which will only receive 38 days of snow cover per year.

Even the European Alps, where 69 per cent of the world’s ski areas are located, are expected to have 42 per cent fewer days of snow cover by 2100.

Likewise, earlier this year Mt Fuji’s iconic slopes were left snowless for the longest time in 130 years of records.

Snow did not settle on Japan’s highest peak until the start of November, a month later than the usual date of October 2.

The situation is so dire that many resorts have been forced to store snow in vast insulated reserves over the summer to supplement slopes during the following season. 

However, the authors of this latest paper warn that decreasing snowfall across the Alps will ruin more than a few ski holidays.

Snow plays a vital role in maintaining alpine ecosystems and protecting mountainous settlements from flash flooding.

This map from an earlier study shows how each ski area will be affected by climate change by 2100. The purple squares show areas which will receive no days of snow cover, while the yellow dots show regions which will not be affected 

When precipitation falls as rain instead of snow, it can quickly drain down steep mountain valleys leading to increased erosion and bigger floods.

Research conducted last year at Colorado State University found that rain-driven floods were twice as big as floods caused by melting snow.

Mr Bozzoli concludes: ‘Snow is crucial as a water reservoir, it feeds glaciers, mountain streams and, as it melts slowly in spring, replenishes water reserves gradually.

‘This aspect can no longer be ignored in the policy planning of water management’