Winters melting away?
Congressman Jared Polis enlists ski movie makers, snowboarders and outdoor companies in the fight for a strong climate bill
By Bob Berwyn
SUMMIT COUNTY — As researchers get closer to pinpointing climate change impacts to the ski industry — at least in New England — one Colorado politician has enlisted some ski luminaries in the fight against global warming.
Read some of the University of New Hampshire studies here.
Congressman Jared Polis last week said that passing a strong climate bill will help protect jobs in Colorado mountain towns and small towns around the country.
To raise awareness about climate change impacts, Polis teamed up with Teton Gravity Research, The North Face, and Clif Bar to bring snowboarding star Jeremy Jones and adventure sports filmmaker Steve Jones for a Washington, D.C. screening of a documentary film that shows the impact of climate change in a very personal way.
TGR films reach a live audience of 80,000 each with showings around the country, and many more via DVD and television. The documentary, Generations, features cameos by skiing and snowboarding’s top professionals, putting the issue into a very personal context. The film is online here.
Congressmen Polis also met with other lawmakers, climate researchers and nonprofits to discuss the immediate economic impacts of climate change and how the outdoor industry, a new player in this issue, can leverage major resources in the fight for climate action.
Polis represents the mountain resort communities of Keystone, Breckenridge, Winter Park, Arapahoe Basin, Loveland, Copper Mountain, and Vail and Beaver Creek.
“The ski industry is the lifeblood of my district and climate change is already taking a toll,” said Polis. “These athletes are on the front lines of this crisis, watching snow, ice, and communities disappear all over the world. In sharing their story with Congress, they are sharing the stories of many communities who are desperately watching their way of life disappear with the warming planet,” he continued.
“While the loss of skiing isn’t the worst consequence of climate change, these individuals show us how we all stand to be personally affected by this global problem. Many people think that investing in ‘green jobs’ means simply building windmills or installing solar panels. But they forget about the many jobs — restaurants, ski lifts, hotels, winter equipment and clothing companies, and small community businesses —that suffer as the ski seasons grow shorter and shorter,” Polis said. “Passing a strong climate bill will save jobs in Colorado and small towns across the country.”
Meanwhile, new research from the University of New Hampshire is starting to quantify global warming impacts on the ski industry. In one recent analysis, researcher Elizabeth Burakowski concluded that snow-covered days in New England have been decreasing at a rate of 2.6 days per decade in the past 40 years. The same research shows temperatures have been increasing at an average of .77 degrees per decade.
University of New Hampshire research has also documented other climate-change impacts on the New England ski industry. Click this link for a series of studies on the topic.
In a press release, the University of New Hampshire pointed how winter tourism is the economic engine for many mountain communities. “Their importance extends beyond employment and revenues of the ski area itself. Real estate booms in second homes and condominiums, and in migration by retirees and others, raise housing prices and transform communities in fundamental ways. Tax revenues, businesses, and the needs for infrastructure and social services change as well. If climate shifts directly affect ski areas, their indirect impacts ripple as well,” the researchers concluded.
The economic impacts is affecting smaller ski areas with fewer capital resources, the studies show. Lack of cash for snowmaking upgrades may be contributing to the high failure rate of smaller areas, the researchers concluded.
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