An alarm has been raised about the future of Australia’s famed ski fields after a new report into the effects of climate change found snowfall may drop by almost 80 per cent.
The report by researchers at the University of Bayreauth in Germany found snowfall in the Australian Alps could be slashed by 2100 if global emissions continue to increase.
Researchers found Australia’s snowfields were the most at risk from a future scenario in which global emissions were high when compared to six snowfields worldwide.
Published in journal PLOS One on Thursday, the report compared Australia against other snowfields, including in the United States, Europe, Japan, and South America.
While snowfields south of the equator were most at risk, the report found about 13 per cent of ski areas globally were predicted to lose all natural snow cover by 2100.
“Within this century, climate change will globally lead to a substantial reduction in annual snow cover days in ski areas under all emissions scenarios,” the report found.
“We project a considerable increase in ski areas completely lacking snow in the future … One 5th will experience a reduction of 50-100 per cent (in snow) in 2071-2100.”
The researchers compared low and high emissions scenarios in the report, which also found low-lying and highly-populated ski fields globally were most at risk.
Tourists travelling to ski fields in NSW and Victoria last year lamented what was a difficult season for both tourism operators and towns dependent on visitation.
Major ski field operators in both states postponed the start to their ski season in June. Just months later, there were already reports of slush and unskiable fields.
The Australian ski season runs from June to September in the Australian Alps which straggle the NSW-Victoria border. Major operators include Thredbo and Fall Creek.