The result is that several ski areas in the Southern Alps, like Craigieburn Valley, have not opened for a single day this season, with some travellers, who%u2019ve cancelled their trips entirely, given refunds.
And the fear is, with winter rolling into its third month, there may not be enough snow to open at all this year.
There’s every reason to worry long-term too. It has been the warmest start to winter in New Zealand since records began and the large resorts – like Queenstown%u2019s Coronet Peak – have only managed to open because they’ve invested mega bucks in equipment to make their own snow.
To add to industry woes, new research has found that New Zealand%u2019s vast Southern Alps mountain range has lost a third of its permanent snow and ice over the past four decades.
A study of aerial surveys conducted by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) discovered that the Southern Alp’s ice volume has shrunk by an alarming 34% since 1977.
It could lead to the severe decline of some of New Zealand%u2019s mightiest glaciers.
Image via Getty
The result is that several ski areas in the Southern Alps, like Craigieburn Valley, have not opened for a single day this season, with some travellers, who’ve cancelled their trips entirely, given refunds.
And the fear is, with winter rolling into its third month, there may not be enough snow to open at all this year.
There’s every reason to worry long-term too. It has been the warmest start to winter in New Zealand since records began and the large resorts – like Queenstown’s Coronet Peak – have only managed to open because they’ve invested mega bucks in equipment to make their own snow.
To add to industry woes, new research has found that New Zealand’s vast Southern Alps mountain range has lost a third of its permanent snow and ice over the past four decades.
A study of aerial surveys conducted by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) discovered that the Southern Alp’s ice volume has shrunk by an alarming 34% since 1977.
It could lead to the severe decline of some of New Zealand’s mightiest glaciers.
Image via Getty
