Australia’s biggest snow resort, Perisher Valley, has announced two major areas of terrain will be closing due to warmer temperatures melting the snow.
The early closure of Guthega and Smiggin Holes means the available terrain for spring skiing will be reduced.
Long-term local, Liz Withers wasn’t surprised by the early closure as it’s been a much warmer August than usual.
“It used to be freezing all the time, but this year we’ve had warm weather since halfway through August and this is meant to be peak time,” she said.
“I can’t remember this kind of event before.”
This year has consisted of 50 inches of snow, a disappointing figure compared to 2016 where the season had a whopping 144 inches.
Environmental practitioner Jane Mills has suggested that climate change may have had a role in this year’s disappointing conditions.
“Warmer temperatures mean that any moisture in the air falls as rain instead of snow which reduces our snow depth,” she said.
“It also means the snow is arriving later and melting sooner in Spring, resulting in a shorter ski season.”
Skiers and snowboards are remaining optimistic that next year will be better, however with predictions of increased temperatures and decreased precipitation, Australian snow resorts may be at risk in the future.
“Decarbonising our energy system is essential if we are going to slow the rate of global warming and the impacts of climate change on Australia’s weather and our snow depths,” Ms Mills said.
Perisher isn’t the only resort slowing operations down in response to poor climate conditions.
Thredbo is only operating eight out of the 16 lifts, whilst Mount Selwyn officially closed on August 25.
Despite the early wind down of the Perisher ski season, thousands of people will still flock the resort to get their final snow fix in and shred what’s left of the snow.
To view Perishers snowfall history visit: https://www.onthesnow.com/australia/perisher/historical-snowfall
