All the Beijing snow is human-made -- a resource-intensive, 'dangerous' trend as planet warms

[Nevilledog]

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Leilani Münter
@LeilaniMunter
The International Olympic Committee estimated that 49 million gallons of water will be needed to produce fake snow for the winter games — a day's worth of drinking water for nearly 100 million people.

cnn.com
All the Beijing snow is human-made -- a resource-intensive, 'dangerous' trend as planet warms
Natural snow is becoming less reliable for winter sports, which has led venues leaning more on artificial. But that comes at a cost.
5:48 PM · Feb 5, 2022

https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/04/weather/artificial-snow-beijing-olympics-climate/index.html

(CNN)It would be hard to hold a conversation over the deafening sound of the snow machines preparing the Olympic venues northwest of Beijing. They are loud and they are everywhere, blowing snow across what will be this month's most-watched slopes.

It is almost beautiful -- except that the venues are surrounded by an endless brown, dry landscape completely devoid of snow.

In an Olympic first, though not an achievement to boast about, climate variability has forced the Winter Games to be virtually 100% reliant on artificial snow -- part of a trend that is taking place across winter sports venues around the world.

Just one of the 21 cities that have hosted the Winter Olympics in the past 50 years will have a climate suitable for winter sports by the end of the century, a recent study found, if fossil fuel emissions remain unchecked.

As the planet warms and the weather becomes increasingly more erratic, natural snow is becoming less reliable for winter sports, which forces venues to lean more on artificial snow.

But it comes at a cost: human-made snow is incredibly resource-intensive, requiring massive amounts of energy and water to produce in a climate that's getting warmer and warmer. Elite athletes also say that the sports themselves become trickier and less safe when human-made snow is involved.

*snip*

[tinrobot]

1. I was watching the men's downhill training today.

The course is literally a strip of snow surrounded by dirt and rocks.

Bring the Winter Olympics back to Canada or Norway or some other country with actual snow.

[a kennedy]

2. Ah, with this global warming thing.......everywhere there's supposed to be snow, THERE ISN'T.

[tinrobot]

3. True, but there was never that much snow to begin with in Beijing

...or Sochi.

These places were picked because of money and politics, not because there were ideal venues for winter sports.

[SunSeeker]

5. Exactly. Venues without reliable natural snow cover should be ineligible. nt

[Klaralven]

4. Even in a cold climate, the "playing surfaces" would be artificial snow

They are specifically constructed for the events. You don't leave a billion dollar event to the chances of weather.

[SunSeeker]

6. Big difference between blowing a few inches to top off a base and creating it all from scratch.

Sochi had absolutely no business being a Winter Olympics venue. It's a summer resort! Beijing knew it wouldn't have a base of natural snow. Man-made snow on top of rocks is dangerous.

[cinematicdiversions]

7. Should we tell them about ski resorts???

I mean even in the seventies and eighties, resorts like Killington and Mt Snow used artificial snow. It has nothing to do with global warming BTW and everything to do with extending the season and making sure there is always snow on the mountain.

[Klaralven]

8. 49 million gallons of water is enough to irrigate about 60 acres of almonds for a year

It is about 180 acre-feet, and almonds take about 3 feet of water per year.

[Sympthsical]

9. Yeah, this article didn't bother me so much

49 million gallons sounds like a lot in passing.

But once you do the volume conversions and compare it to how much is used in agriculture as you did, it's not this disastrously large thing. Vineyards also use quite a bit of water. An average size vineyard could go through a million gallons a day. Then they need more water to actually make the wine at a 4:1 ratio.

Still a point about climate change. We're losing our winters in places. I went skiing in Tahoe not too long ago, where it was warmer and they were relying almost solely on artificial snow. Damn near killed myself skiing.

I imagine that will not be a problem this year.