Chronically Short Of Snow, French Alps Ski Resort Closes Permanently - IHT

ABONDANCE, France: Muddy slopes, slushy peaks, unused lifts - this town in the French Alps is living out the nightmare of many a ski resort in a century scientists say is doomed to keep getting warmer. The city council of Abondance - its name a cruel reminder of the generous snowfall it once enjoyed - voted last month 9-6 to shut down the ski station that has been its economic raison d'etre for more than 40 years. The reason: not enough snow.

Abondance is the French Alps' first ski station to fall apparent victim to global warming. It will almost certainly not be the last. At 930 meters (3,051 feet), this station between Mont Blanc and Lake Leman falls in the altitude range climate scientists say has seen the most dramatic drop in snowfall in recent generations.

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"We remain calm, one shouldn't overstate the phenomenon," said Georges Gay-Lancernin, of Credit Agricole de Haute Savoie, one of the chief banks financing France's mountain economy. He said the bank had no "general position about stations at mid or high altitude, but conducts studies on a case-by-case basis."

Nevertheless, small stations are having increasing difficulty finding investors. Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse, at 900 meters (2,952 feet) sought public funding to upgrade one of its lifts. The improved lift, ready for the 2006-2007 season, didn't budge all winter because there was not enough snow. In Abondance, where snow fell only 20 days last year, town officials have been seeking private buyers for the station for several years. Transmontagne and Remy Loisirs expressed interest, but never followed through, the mayor said. The regional council for the Haute Savoie region refused the mayor's request for aid, deeming the station no longer profitable.

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http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/19/travel/0720francewarm.php

Some imagination is required.

attempting to sustain over 6 billion people, something MORE than imagination is required. Sand skis; Nude ranch; might be in order.

deep powder and almost empty-very long runs down the glacier
went back 10 years later and very crowded-still a beautiful place

Oh, the kind of snow you SKI on--never mind...

:blush:
rocknation