Eco - Skiing

Skiing is the flavour of the month here at KISC right now.

With some record snowfalls and sub zero temperatures this season, ski conditions couldn’t be better and there is nothing that we like more then a ski day here in the Swiss Alps.

Skiing is one of the best ways to get out into nature in the winter and enjoy our mountain environment.
But Skiing is certainly not the most eco friendly activity around – man made snow, ski lifts, mountain restaurants and man made ski pistes bulldozed into the mountain all pollute in different ways.

So we were interested to see what actions our local ski resorts were taking to try and minimise their impact.

Adelboden is our nearest large ski resort – with a staggering 31 lifts and 53 different ski runs spread over a large area and they are trying some new eco-initiatives this winter season:  

• The Aebi chairlift, one of the main lifts in the network, is committed to using only green energy through the winter to power it.
• Snowmaking at Adelboden is free from chemicals - just water and air are used.

• They have invested in the latest Piste machine, to groom the pistes at Aebi, with far lower emissions then normal
• The longest piste at Aebi, now has an “Energy” ski run with signs informing skiers of their eco policy.

There is still some way to go at Adelboden - it would be awesome to see the initiatives spread from the Aebi area to the whole ski area.

But it is great to see that they have made a start and are considering the environmental impact of skiing.

That is all for now on Ecoblog - it is time to hit the slopes!