Summer skiing in Tignes threatened by glacier retreat linked to climate change
Research shows that glacier retreat is affecting ski areas and tourism activities across the Alpine region
Published
Glaciers across the Alps are shrinking as temperatures are rising, affecting mountain tourism and activities that depend on snow and ice.
One example is the Grande Motte glacier in Tignes, Savoie, where summer skiing is threatened since warmer conditions have reduced snow cover.
The Grande Motte, located at more than 3,000 metres above sea level, is well-known in France for its summer skiing areas. However, as the glacier has been retreating these past decades, summer skiing is becoming all the more difficult to maintain.
During this period, temperatures are around 5C at 3,456m altitude in the morning with no overnight freezing. “We will not be skiing on the glacier for much longer, particularly in summer. Given the speed at which it is melting, scientists estimate that the glacier could disappear within 10 to 15 years,” said Clément Colin, president of the Alliance Locale pour la Transition des Territoires d’Altitude (Altta) to France 3.
Tignes has reportedly sold less than 8,000 ski passes since the opening of the summer ski season on June 20.
What is happening at Tignes though is part of a wider decline in summer glacier skiing across the Alps.
A 2023 study by Bruno Abegg and Marius Mayer published in Frontiers in Human Dynamics examines the evolution of Alpine glacier ski areas between 2011 and 2022.
The study found that summer skiing on Alpine glaciers became much less frequent. Between 2011 and 2022, the proportion of days when glacier ski areas were open during the summer season (May to October) fell from 27% to 14.8%.
The decline was particularly noticeable in August, when the proportion of operating days fell by 88.6% compared with 2011.
“Alpine summer skiing has been facing a decline for years,” the study explained and said the trend was linked to a combination of climate change, glacier loss, adaptation costs and changing operating conditions.
Meanwhile, the study identified the Grande Motte glacier in Tignes as one example of these changes. The researchers noted that the glacier, which previously allowed skiing for a big part of the year, had lost much of its summer skiing capacity. In 2022, the glacier was mostly snow-free during summer and summer skiing was no longer possible after July 1.
Climate change affects other forms of glacier tourism in the Alps
A separate study published at the National Library of Medicine examined glacier tourism sites across the Alps and analysed the effects of climate change on tourism activities.
The researchers found that glacier retreat, reduced snow cover, warming permafrost (permanently frozen ground that helps stabilise high-altitude slopes) and related landscape changes were affecting access routes, visitor safety, infrastructure and tourism activities.
They also identified several adaptation measures used by tourism operators, including changes to opening periods, improvements to safety measures, modifications to access routes, diversification of activities and projects focused on heritage.
The authors concluded that many adaptation measures can help maintain glacier tourism in the short and medium term, but that long-term changes are needed as glacier loss continues.
