Skiing Less Often in a Warmer World: Attitudes of Tourists to Climate Change in an Australian Ski Resort

Climate change will affect tourism destinations that are dependent on natural resources, such as snow. Currently there is limited research into attitudes, intentions and actual visitation patterns of skiers in response to reduced snow cover. Therefore the awareness of, and attitudes towards, climate change of 351 ski tourists were assessed in the largest ski resort in Australia in 2007, repeating a survey conducted in 1996. Ninety percent of skiers in 2007 would ski less often in Australian resorts if the next five years had low natural snow, up from 75% of skiers surveyed in 1996: 69% would ski less often, 5% would give up and 16% would ski at the same levels but overseas. Nearly all skiers thought that climate change would affect the ski industry (87% compared with 78% in 1996), and that this would occur sooner than in the 1996 survey. Visitation in a poor snow year (2006, +0.85°C average annual temperature, 54% less natural snow) was −13.6% of the long-term average, indicating poor natural snow resulted in decreased visitation, despite extensive use of snow making. The implications of changes in climate conditions and tourist attitudes for Australian ski resorts are assessed including for snow making and summer tourism.     

Spatial‐temporal patterns of snow cover in western Canada

Snow cover is often measured as snow‐water equivalent (SWE), which refers to the amount of water stored in a snow pack that would be available upon melting. Snow cover and SWE represent a source of local snow‐melt release, and are sensitive to regional and global atmospheric circulation, and changes in climate. Monitoring SWE using satellite‐based passive microwave radiometry has provided nearly three decades of continuous data for North America. The availability of spatially and temporally extensive SWE data enables a better understanding of the nature of space‐time trends in snow cover, changes in these trends and linking these trends to underlying landscape and terrain characteristics. To address these interests, we quantify the spatial pattern of SWE by applying a local measure of spatial autocorrelation to 25 years of mean February SWE derived from passive microwave retrievals. Using a method for characterizing the temporal trends in the spatial pattern of SWE, temporal trends and variability in spatial autocorrelation are quantified. Results indicate that within the Canadian Prairies, extreme values of SWE are becoming more spatially coherent, with potential impacts on water availability, and hazards such as flooding. These results also highlight the need for Canadian ecological management units that consider winter conditions.     

The Potential of Tree Rings in Eucalyptus pauciflora for Climatological and Hydrological Reconstruction

We investigate the causes of variability in a tree‐ring chronology comprising data from Eucalyptus pauciflora Sieb. Ex. Spreng. at the alpine treeline on the Kosciuszko Plateau in New South Wales, Australia. Following verification of crossdating in a subset of the available data, we found that ring width correlates significantly with net radiation, precipitation and mean minimum and maximum air temperature during the preceding winter and spring of the growing season. Our results for spring are consistent with the impact of climate on tree growth in alpine woodlands reported in previous studies. Analyses of snow‐depth data revealed negative correlations with ring width throughout winter and spring. Our results indicate that low temperature and high precipitation during winter negatively affect the growth of E. pauciflora by prolonging spring snow cover. Ring width also correlates significantly with an index of soil dryness and flow in rivers with their headwaters in the Kosciuszko plateau. Given the apparent sensitivity of our chronology to climate and snow conditions, our results suggest that tree‐ring chronologies comprising data from E. pauciflora at the alpine treeline have potential for climatological and hydrological reconstruction in southeast Australia.     

SNOW AS A RESOURCE AND HAZARD IN EARLY-TWENTIETH-CENTURY MINING, SELKIRK MOUNTAINS, BRITISH COLUMBIA

Snow as both a resource and a hazard is discussed in the context of early-twentieth-century mining in the southern Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia. This case study focuses on the Carpenter Creek region , a productive silver mining area during the period 1892–1930. Historical data sources including newspapers, government reports, anecdotal literature, and photographs, have been employed. As a resource, snow usually provided a plentiful water-supply for domestic, industrial, and power-generation purposes and served as the basis of ore transport from most minesites by the process of rawhiding. As a hazard, snow disrupted trail and rail transport and was the basis of an enduring avalanche risk that often resulted in deaths, injuries, and structural damage. Mining and related activities destroyed much of the natural forest cover, which led to an increased extent of avalanches. A variety of technological and behavioural adjustments were made to mitigate the hazards posed by snow. Other hazards such as forest fires and flooding, coupled with socioeconomic conditions, such as silver prices, labour shortages, and strikes, adversely affected the local economy throughout the period of study. However, the ultimate demise of the economy resulted from the collapse of world silver prices in 1929 .     

Climate change adaptation of the tourism sector in the Bolivian Andes

Over the last 40 years, warmer temperatures have caused a considerable decrease in snow cover on glaciers and high rates of glacial melt, particularly in tropical mountains. In the Bolivian Andes, the Chacaltaya glacier (5400 masl) had been a tourist destination known as the highest ski slope in the world since 1939. As a result of climate change, skiing has not been possible after 1987 and the glacier definitely disappeared in 2009. However, since 2005, the place has become a new attraction for tourists. Travel agencies in La Paz now offer day trips to the Chacaltaya site. In order to understand the present attraction of the site and its potential for reproduction elsewhere, 25 semi-structured interviews were conducted with various categories of stakeholders involved in the tourism industry in La Paz, and archives and images were analysed. Our results show that the multifunctional character of this tourist site, including easy access to a summit, beautiful views, acclimatisation to altitude and opportunity to experience snow, are key factors in its renewed attraction for visitors, together with, to a lesser extent, the incentive of being able to watch a famous and evident full disappearance of a glacier and former ski slope. The stakeholders' groups share general views and perceptions about environmental changes and about the qualities of the site, but they also differ in terms of projects and evaluation of potential attractiveness. In particular, the development of the visibility of climate change impacts on mountain environment is valued by experts or by members of the Andean Club, but not by travel agencies. The example of Chacaltaya shows that multifunctional tourist sites may still be attractive in the future.     

A preliminary assessment of the socio‐economic and environmental impacts of recent changes in winter snow cover in Scotland

Changes in the spatial extent and duration of winter snow‐cover, both in Scotland and in a wider global context, have a number of socio‐economic and environmental implications. Evidence from Scottish climatological stations appears to suggest that the most marked decease in the number of days with snow lying has occurred since the late 1970s. Information on the effects of these changes was gathered using a questionnaire which was sent to key stakeholders. Responses suggest deleterious effects on winter recreation and sports, upland habitats and flood regimes in Scottish rivers. An extended snow‐free season has affected access to, and management of, Scottish land.     

On Biotic and Geomic Factors in the Formation of the Natural Enviornment

The author, a landscape scientist, defends the view that inert nature, which he calls geoma, exerts a far more powerful impact on the formation of the natural environment than living nature, or the biota. In his view the total environment is shaped by biotic modification of the basic geomic environment. Most biotic modifications are unstable and reversible and last only as long as the biological plant and animal community that produces them. However, some biotic modifications are irreversible and leave a trace even after the disappearance of the biocenosis. Both reversible modifications (microclimate, snow cover, runoff, etc) and irreversible changes (rock weathering, the formation of hardpan, some soil elements) are discussed with particular reference to the impact of a forest community on the geomic environment.     

Effect of multipath and snow on millimeter wave scintillations on a 4.1-km line-of-sight link

Multipath propagation can occur for various reasons. For example, it can be due to sudden changes in the refractive index of the propagation medium or to reflections from melting snow/ice. We find that dry snow, or even ‘moist’ snow at 0°C, has no measurable effect on the propagation of radio waves up to at least 54.5 GHz. When multipath propagation occurs, the low frequency part of the scintillation spectrum is distorted. The usual theoretical predictions applicable to line-of-sight millimeter wave propagaton through clear air turbulence must be used with caution when the scintillations of the propagating signals are a result of multipath effects. It is also noted that propagation through vegetation greatly distorts the clear-air scintillation spectrum. Saturation of scintillations, which can also dramatically alter the scintillation spectrum, is not expected to be a problem for millimeter wave propagation over line-of-sight paths.     

ON THE CONNECTION BETWEEN LEVEL FLUCTUATIONS IN THE CASPIAN SEA AND THE ARAL SEA

Although both the Caspian and Aral Sea basins are affected by fluctuations in the general moisture conditions affecting the Northern Hemisphere, the two drainage basins react differently to identical moisture changes both over the long term and over the short term. Over the short term, a shift in wet periods has been observed between the European part of the USSR, which contains the Volga basin draining into the Caspian, and western Asia, which contains the Aral Sea drainage basin. Since there is a direct relationship between general moisture conditions and level changes, the short-term level fluctuations would be heterochronous (out of phase) in the two seas. Over the long term, the comparison is complicated by the fact that Caspian drainage derives mainly from snow meltwater in the Russian plain while Aral Sea drainage derives from a combination of snow and glacier meltwater. Glacier runoff tends to increase in dry, warm periods and to decrease in wet, cold periods of glacier growth, while snow is related directly to general moisture conditions.     

黑龙江省冰雪旅游开发战略AHP决策分析

运用AHP层次分析法,对黑龙江省的冰雪旅游开发战略进行了定性与定量相结合的分析,并得出结论:黑龙江省应该首先实行冰雪旅游产业化战略目标,同时不可忽视冰雪旅游国际化战略目标;而争创品牌战略是第一重要的发展战略;当前亟待解决的首要问题是思想观念不够开放、经济欠发达和管理体制较落后,应该采取的措施是加大体制改革力度、根本改变"多头管理、政令不一"的现状,借鉴国内外冰雪旅游开发成功经验,大力发展滑雪旅游等。通过这些具体措施,可以确保实现"提高黑龙江省冰雪旅游的综合竞争力,把黑龙江省建设成为中国最大、世界知名的冰雪旅游胜地"的总体目标。     

Geomorphology of snow avalanche impact landforms in the southern Canadian Cordillera

Snow avalanche impact landforms (SAILs) are typically elliptical-shaped depressions bounded by an arcuate ridge located at the base of avalanche paths. The geomorphology of these features is controlled by the topography of the avalanche path, the availability of unconsolidated debris in the impact area and the ability of the avalanche impacts to displace the available debris in the direction of avalanche flow. Ground-based snow avalanches move debris by bulldozing, and airborne snow avalanches move sediment by excavation on impact .
This paper reports on the geomorphology, and surface age and stability of three SAILs in the southern Canadian Cordillera. Dendrochronology and lichenometry were used to date geomorphic activity at the sites. Evidence of present SAIL stability suggests they result from episodic, high-magnitude avalanche impact events over many hundreds of years. All three landforms share common morphologies: a water-filled bowl-shaped depression distally bounded by an arcuate ridge-oriented transverse to the avalanche path. Despite sharing many attributes, field investigations revealed that the origin of each SAIL was a function of the local variations in snow avalanche path topography and availability of unconsolidated debris in the impact area. The snow avalanche path associated with the Blackhorn site has a gentle gradient, which suggests that this SAIL is a result of ground-based avalanches. The SAIL at Spoon Lake appears to be a consequence of a resistant geologic feature that focuses snow avalanches in the impact area and results in explosive excavation. The morphology of the snow avalanche track at Peyto Lake causes large snow avalanches to become airborne prior to impacting and excavating an impact pool. All three SAILs examined in this paper are historically persistent landforms and these observations support previous findings indicating that SAILs require hundreds of years to develop .     

Methods Of Evaluating The Natural Environment For Transport Development (with reference to the north of Tyumen' Oblast)

A landscape map of northern Tyumen' Oblast, an area of intensive oil and gas development, is used as the base for compilation of an applied landscape map evaluating the environment in terms of suitability for various means of transportation. In terms of such criteria as the carrying capacity of the ground, dissection of terrain and slope angles, climate, distances between trees, bog and lake cover, 16 regions offering distinctive conditions for transport development are delimited and mapped. The technique is offered as an aid in estimating transport-development costs and may be applied for similar purposes in other regions of USSR.     

The Historical Snow Survey of Great Britain: Digitised Data for Scotland

Abstract

Mountain snowline is important as it is an easily observable measure of the phase state of water in the landscape. Changes in seasonal snowline elevation can indicate long-term trends in temperature or other climate variables. Snow-cover influences local flora and fauna, and knowledge of snowline can inform management of water and associated risks. Between 1945 and 2007 voluntary observers collected a subjective record of snow cover across Great Britain called the Snow Survey of Great Britain (SSGB). The original paper copy SSGB data is held by the Met Office. This article details the digitisation of the Scottish SSGB data, its spatial and temporal extents, and a brief example comparison of Met Office snow-lying gridded data. The digitised SSGB data are available from the Met Office authors.     

Causes and Factors of Ground-Ice Formation

The concept of ground ice is expanded to cover all forms of ice formed at the interface between two environments—the solid state and the gaseous. Ground ice is thus defined as the product of the layer-by-layer freezing of liquid water or droplets of any origin as it passes from a zone of positive temperatures into a zone below the freezing point. Ground ice may be produced by subsurface waters (springs and groundwater), surface waters (river, lake, sea, glacier and snow meltwater) and atmospheric moisture (glaze, rime, hail). [The definition excludes ice formed within the solid-state environment of the lithosphere (segregated ice, cement ice, injection ice).] Ground ice produced by subsurface waters may be formed at the surface or in large subterranean cavities, and it may be associated with the natural discharge of water or with the freezing of aquifers. Ground ice produced by surface waters may be associated with an increase of water volume in a waterbody as the level of the ice cover remains stable; with a constriction of the discharge cross section, and with changes in heat and moisture exchange. Ground ice derived from atmospheric moisture is formed either on terrestrial objects (glaze, rime) or in the free atmosphere (hail, ice formed on aircraft).     

中外滑雪旅游的比较研究

本文就滑雪旅游历史进程、自然地理条件、滑雪地与滑雪场建设、客源市场状况等方面进行中外对比,旨在促进我国滑雪旅游业稳步、持续地发展。     

Urban pattern and land cover variation in the greater Toronto area

Recent epistemological shifts in environmental geography have created a space to consider the interactions between ecological and urban systems more seriously. While openness to thinking about urban ecosystems has increased in recent years, there remain fundamental gaps in our knowledge. For example, recent research has examined the impact of urban–rural gradients on ecological conditions, but major voids exist regarding the relationship between urban development patterns and land cover heterogeneity, particularly for new forms of urbanization. This article attempts to address some of these gaps by examining the relationship between urban pattern and land cover in the greater Toronto area (GTA). In particular, measures of urban pattern that reflect aspects of development density, grain and function, as well as socio-economic characteristics, are systematically analyzed in relation to land cover heterogeneity. The regression analysis shows that multiple components of urban development pattern and socio-economic conditions are correlated with vegetated land covers, while urban density variables are not related. These results indicate more detailed representations of urban pattern should be incorporated into future human–environmental interaction studies in cities.     

Radiation Conditions in the Territory of the USSR in Various Geological Periods

The components of the radiation balance and the heat balance are computed for Lat. 45°, 60° and 75°N for various geological periods. Cloud cover is estimated for each geological period on the basis of continentality, the character of the underlying surface, type of climate and landscape as well as the known mean magnitude during the present geological period. Albedo is based on the character of the underlying surface indicated by paleogeographic data. Effective outgoing radiation is also based on the character of the underlying surface as well as cloud cover and atmospheric moisture. The disposition of net radiation at the earth's surface is broken down into sensible and latent heat fluxes, the soil heat flux being ignored. The resulting mean data on radiation and heat-balance components are then used to reconstruct the probable range of climatic situations that may have existed in what are now the polar, middle, and subtropical latitudes of the territory of the USSR.     

哈尔滨市创建世界冰雪旅游名城对策研究

建设世界冰雪旅游名城已成为新世纪初哈尔滨市实现跨越式发展的一项重要战略举措,如何发展冰雪旅游,做好冰雪旅游产业文章,真正将哈尔滨建设成为国际知名的冰雪旅游城市,是哈尔滨面临的重大课题。本文提出按国际水准进行规划、构建“政府主导社会参与市场运作”发展格局、走“提质增效”的经营道路、推进产品创新、制定有效的市场营销策略、营造世界冰雪旅游名城环境氛围、提升旅游服务、重视人才培养实施人才兴旅战略等相应对策。     

A Forest of Contradictions: Producing the Landscapes of the Scottish Highlands

While total global forest cover is decreasing, in many parts of the world forests are on the rebound. Uncritical examinations of this phenomenon credit the benign diffusion of capitalist development for this "forest transition." More critical readings of this question—including green Marxian and poststructuralist approaches—might conclude something very different, however. In this paper, we explore the question of expanding forest cover, using the case of the Scottish Highlands, where forestland has tripled since the 1920s, in an attempt to critically explain regional land–cover change. Drawing upon historical sources and Scottish Executive and Forestry Commission data, we examine the specific environments currently forming in the Highlands under conditions of economic change. We conclude that two divergent forestry practices and ecologies have been formed in the wake of economic restructuring: those geared towards industrial production and those targeted at consumption through ecotourism. We conclude, therefore, that capitalism's spatial fix to declining industrial power in the region is an inherently ecological one that takes the form of "schizophrenic forestry," in which forest expansion leads to the rise of degraded monocultures alongside "pristine" sites of conservation.