FILE - A skier descends Black Mountain of Maine, Feb. 11, 2023, in Rumford, Maine. A new study says U.S. ski areas lost about $5 billion from 2000 to 2019 as a result of human-caused climate change. FILE - A skier descends Black Mountain of Maine, Feb. 11, 2023, in Rumford, Maine. A new study says U.S. ski areas lost about $5 billion from 2000 to 2019 as a result of human-caused climate change. FILE - A skier descends Black Mountain of Maine, Feb. 11, 2023, in Rumford, Maine. A new study says U.
Thanksgiving holiday skiers descend near the North Ridge Quad chairlift, Nov. 24, 2023, at Killington Ski Resort in Killington, Vt. The researchers calculated economic losses based on increased operating costs for snowmaking along with lost skier revenue. Scott called the estimates “probably somewhat conservative,” noting that they don’t include such things as the loss of money that skiers spend on goods and services in winter sport communities.
The researchers wrote that snowmaking is “no longer able to completely offset ongoing climate changes” and said “the era of peak ski seasons has likely passed in most U.S. markets.”