German ski resort conserves snow under wood chips
STORY: There’s snow hidden under these wood chips (arrow)
Date: August 23, 2022
The German ski resort of Oberstdorf is trying to conserve it
for use in the upcoming winter season
(Florian Speigl, Manager, Oberstdorf Nordic Center)
“We produce snow in the winter and then store it in a depot which we cover with wood chips before we use the snow in the autumn to build the first cross-country ski track.”
The thick layer of insulating wood chips soaks up rainwater
and ensures there is no exchange of air
Once dry weather returns, the humidity vaporizes creating a cooling effect
“We believe that there is a volume loss of maybe 20 or 25% if it’s done properly and if the choice of the site is ideal like here, a very sunny site. We are collecting experience and in the end, we’ll need to evaluate the situation and see how it went.”
