Decarbonising ski tourism hinges on clean electricity rather than snowmaking technology, study finds

A new analysis from the University of Innsbruck is challenging a long-held assumption in ski tourism: that artificial snow is automatically a major carbon burden. The study argues that the emissions profile of snowmaking depends far less on the machines themselves than on the electricity used to run them.

For Austria, the researchers estimate annual snowmaking emissions at between 6,246 and 7,424 tonnes of CO₂, or roughly 120 to 140 grams per skier visit. That is far below the figures in a separate Canadian study, which put national emissions from snowmaking at 130,095 tonnes a year, or about 6,670 grams per skier visit. The gap reflects not only newer data and more efficient equipment, but also a more important factor: the power grid.

Austria’s ski areas are largely supplied by renewable electricity, with hydropower dominating the national mix. In the resorts themselves, snow guns are effectively powered by low-carbon electricity generated in the same alpine regions where the snow is needed. The Innsbruck researchers say the electricity demand for Austrian snowmaking, at 281GWh a season, is small relative to the country’s overall energy use and emissions.

The Canadian study, carried out by researchers from the University of Innsbruck and the University of Waterloo, shows how sharply the picture changes across provincial grids. Quebec, where hydropower dominates electricity supply, has a snowmaking footprint of only 17 grams of CO₂ per skier visit. Alberta, by contrast, where fossil fuels remain central to power generation, records 7,370 grams per skier visit. British Columbia and Ontario sit much lower than Alberta, at 554 grams and 520 grams respectively, but still well above Quebec.

That contrast means Alberta accounts for almost all of Canada’s snowmaking emissions despite producing a smaller share of machine-made snow. The Canadian researchers found that 39% of the country’s artificial snow led to 96% of its snowmaking carbon output, underlining how strongly the climate impact is shaped by electricity supply rather than by the snowmaking process itself.

The implication for ski operators is significant. The most important decarbonisation lever is not necessarily a more efficient snow gun, but a cleaner grid. Austria’s statutory target of 100% renewable electricity by 2030, together with the closure of its last coal plant in 2020, already gives its ski industry a structural advantage. Canada’s researchers also suggest that even if snowmaking volumes rose substantially by the 2050s, emissions could still fall sharply if provincial grids continue to decarbonise.

Both studies also point to a broader truth that matters well beyond the ski sector: snowmaking is only a small part of the climate footprint of winter tourism. Transport to and from resorts, especially long-distance car and air travel, generally overwhelms the emissions from snow production itself. In Austria, where foreign visitors account for a large share of arrivals, the journey to the slopes can matter far more than the energy used to cover them in snow.

For industrial decarbonisation professionals, the lesson is familiar. The same equipment can have very different emissions outcomes depending on the power system behind it. In ski tourism, as in many other electrified sectors, the most material carbon reductions are likely to come from upstream energy transition rather than from operational tinkering alone.