Climate change as a threat to tourism in the Alps

Climate Research

Rolf Bürki¹  Hans Elsasser¹ 

关键词: Climate change;    Tourism;    Skiing;    Snow;    Alps;    Switzerland;   

DOI  :  10.3354/cr020253

来源: Inter-Research Science Publishing

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACT: Switzerland¹s economy depends heavily on tourism. For many alpine areas in the country, winter tourism is the most important source of income, and snow-reliability is one of the key elements of the offers made by tourism in the Alps. Thefinancial viability of winter tourism, however, depends on sufficient snow conditions. The lack of snow at the end of the 1980s left a lasting imprint on the tourism industry. If the assumptions of the impacts of climate change hold true, snow cover inthe Swiss Alps will diminish, and this will, in turn, jeopardise the tourism industry. 85% of Switzerland¹s current ski resorts can be designated as snow-reliable. If climate change occurs, the level of snow-reliability will rise from 1200 m up to 1800 mover the next few decades. Only 44% of the ski resorts would then still be snow-reliable. While some regions may be able to maintain their winter tourism with suitable adaptation strategies, others would lose all winter tourism due to a diminishing snowpack. Despite global warming, it is impossible to exclude the possibility of winters with heavy snowfall in the future (e.g. the winter of 1998/99, particularly February 1999). Climate change must be viewed as a catalyst that is reinforcing andaccelerating the pace of structural changes in tourism. Today, adaptation strategies are predominant in tourism (e.g. artificial snow production). As an industry that will be severely affected by climate change, however, tourism will increasingly have tofocus on mitigation strategies (e.g. less greenhouse gas emissions by tourism traffic).

【 授权许可】

Unknown