For Mathieu Ros, head of the French branch of the American association Protect Our Winters, which brings together skiers, snowboarders, athletes and brands of outdoor products committed to the effects of climate change in mountain areas, the efforts made by some stations. But much remains to be done. Witness the controversy that erupted this Sunday over the snowfall of ski resorts by helicopter.
Can skiing rhyme with ecology?
MATHIEU ROS. A winter sports resort, like a city, a highway or any other infrastructure, can be perfectly green. This requires that it undertake real actions but also that it communicate with the tourists it welcomes so that they agree to change some of their habits.
What is the most polluting aspect of the winter sports industry?
It is common to criticize, to cite only these two examples, the misuse of snow cannons or the visual pollution generated by ski lifts. These are false targets which represent almost nothing in the overall environmental impact of a station. The biggest problem is elsewhere: the means of transport, and the car in particular, used by tourists to get to and move around stations alone represent 50 to 80% of a station's carbon footprint.
So it is on this particular point that we must first act?
Yes, because the less you use the car, the better. The problem in France is old and difficult to solve because ski enthusiasts have long considered that the car remains the best way to go skiing and that traffic jams, before arriving at the resort or at departure, are an integral part of their trip.
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What measure could have a quick and effective impact?
We are fortunate in France to have a very dense rail network. The SNCF would have to put more trains there to reach the stations near the stations. Without forgetting to hand over night trains which would allow Parisians to come more easily to the Pyrenees. Today, in France, the only way to go skiing 100% by train is to choose the resort of Les Arcs in the Alps, the only station to offer a funicular taking travelers directly on the slopes from Bourg station -Saint-Maurice.
What type of initiative is also useful in the eyes of your association?
Among the stations that are making real efforts, I am thinking of Serre Chevalier and its approach towards clean electricity with solar panels placed on their ski lift stations and other buildings in the ski area. Some brands also act, such as Patagonia for example, which transfers its profits to environmental actions and encourages its customers not to buy new ski suits but rather to repair the ones that skiers already have.