The world’s largest indoor ski resort has opened in China. How will this impact its climate goals?

SINGAPORE: Game designer Kevin Xian is an avid skier who now gets to enjoy his favourite hobby, regardless of the season - even in the sweltering Shanghai summer this year - thanks to the growing number of indoor ski resorts in China.

“I enjoy exploring off-piste skiing in the mountains ... Indoor skiing has more stable snow conditions and is unaffected by weather, making transportation relatively convenient,” Mr Xian, 33, who is based in Shanghai, told CNA. 

“In the past, outdoor ski resorts were only available in the northern regions and could only be used for four months a year. Now, with indoor ski resorts, skiing can be enjoyed year-round.”

With rising temperatures, retreating snow slopes and shorter ski seasons, indoor ski resorts help feed the nation’s ferocious appetite for winter sports. China’s winter sports economy is thriving, with tourism revenue projected to hit 550 billion yuan (US$77 billion) during this 2023 to 2024 winter season.  

But analysts question the sustainability of indoor ski resorts, especially amidst China’s pledges to reduce carbon emissions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. 

WORLD’S LARGEST INDOOR SKI FACILITY

Located just an hour away from downtown Shanghai is the world’s largest indoor ski resort which recently opened its doors in September – where Chinese skiers can hit the slopes all year round, despite searing temperatures and record heat.

With a skiing area of around 98,800 square metres, the Shanghai L+SNOW Indoor Skiing Theme Resort is six times the size of the famed Big Snow American Dream indoor skiing and snowboarding park in the US. It serves as part of a sprawling integrated tourism and entertainment facility that also houses shops, hotels and an upcoming water park. 

Outside, temperatures are high. The city saw a brutally hot summer this year – issuing its first-ever red heat alert after temperatures soared to above 40.4 degrees Celsius. 

But inside the resort, the mercury is kept below freezing point by 72 giant cooling machines and 33 snow-making machines – and the entire venue is covered with artificial snow of around 70 centimetres thick. To maintain optimal skiing conditions, additional snow can be added based on daily operational needs.

The massive facility also boasts alpine themed attractions like fake mountains, Swiss-style chalets, snow trains, ziplines, cable cars and chair lifts.

Mr Ma Hongji, a ski instructor at the resort, told CNA that he has seen a surge of enthusiastic newcomers flocking to the facility since its official opening on Sep 6. 

The 23-year-old is also part of a new generation of young and avid Chinese skiers embracing the popular winter sport. 

For Mr Ma, it was the allure of skiing indoors in a controlled and safe environment. “Working as a coach here has been wonderful,” he said. “It offers advanced facilities and an excellent teaching environment which provides trainees with a high-quality skiing experience.” 

Locals like a 23-year-old skiing enthusiast who wished to be referred to as Mr Nanji, said visiting the resort was a great way to escape Shanghai’s urban heat. He enjoys it so much that he visits weekly with friends. For him, skiing has quickly become a beloved activity, even replacing his love for other sports like badminton. 

“Among indoor ski resorts, L+SNOW is definitely impressive,” Mr Nanji told CNA. “The largest indoor ice rink sounds interesting and the interior is beautifully designed, like a European castle. Riding the indoor gondola also gives me a feeling of returning to outdoor skiing.” 

He added: “Of course, it can't be compared directly with outdoor resorts, as there’s a big difference in scale … For an indoor ski resort, I believe it is certainly one of the best.”

CAN INDOOR SKIING BE ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE? 

Skiing in China used to be a relatively niche sector, primarily confined to colder regions up north in cities like Harbin. But the industry has seen revived public interest and increased demand, following the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

The Chinese government in 2015 embarked on an ambitious goal of engaging over 300 million people, and to build a lucrative winter sports economy by 2025.

And it appears to have achieved that. Data from a survey published by the National Bureau of Statistics on Jan 12, 2022, showed that some 346 million people in the country had participated in winter sports.

Ice and snow leisure tourism is expected to increase by 25 per cent to 30 per cent during the 2023 to 2024 winter season, according to the China Tourism Academy. 

Apart from boasting the world’s largest indoor ski resort, China also leads the world in the number of indoor ski resorts. China has more than 50 of these facilities, surpassing Japan and South Korea combined, making snow sports accessible to millions of city-dwellers.

Already, the L+SNOW resort has sold more than 100,000 tickets since its opening, the operator says, and government officials expect it to attract annual tourist figures of around 15 million by the end of 2025. 

While China is on track to achieve its winter sports engagement targets, this may pose challenges to hitting its other goal - attaining carbon neutrality by 2060.

A Shanghai government report in August acknowledged that such projects "will inevitably consume a lot of energy”, but it also noted that L+SNOW resort was built to maximise energy reuse where possible.

Mr Mike Laflin, founder and CEO of Global Sustainable Sport, said that indoor ski resorts generally had "a higher carbon footprint, due to the constant need for artificial cooling, lighting, and humidity control". 

While the huge energy requirement could lead to a significant increase in carbon emissions, it could also present an “opportunity” for China to invest in renewable energy sources and energy-efficient technologies, Mr Laflin said.

“This could lead to China developing a leading technology export industry with significant investment into these technologies,” he added. 

The resort’s operator told CNA that they had taken into consideration energy conservation and emission reduction, and adopted various eco-friendly technologies and methods to counter the high energy consumption rates.

Multiple energy-saving measures, such as an ice storage system and waste-heat recovery technology, have been employed to reduce the resort’s carbon footprint, operators said.

The facility would also utilise solar energy, they add. The snow world's roof is covered with 37,000 square metres of photovoltaic panels to “enable an annual reduction of carbon dioxide emissions exceeding 2,000 tonnes”.

"Through these efforts, we hope to achieve sustainability in its operations and minimise carbon emissions as much as possible."

Mr Justin Downes, whose company Axis Leisure Management has been supporting L+SNOW’s operations from technical services and design to pre-opening services, told CNA that global warming places immense pressure on traditional snow resorts. 

“Man-made snow slopes are generally considered more reliable than natural slopes, especially as climate change increasingly affects snowfall patterns,” Mr Downes said.

According to him, many outdoor ski resorts in China’s northern and western regions that rely on natural snowfall were already feeling the effects of warmer winters, while adding that the typical ski season in these areas is shortening. 

Some resorts were also reporting a reduction of up to 20 days in season length over the past decade. 

The reduced snowfall would also result in higher operating costs, given that artificial snow is generated to meet visitor expectations. “Modern venues (that) implement various measures to minimise their environmental footprint ... (such as) utilising state-of-the-art snow guns that minimise energy and water consumption” is just one example of this commitment to ensure the environmental sustainability of its operations, Mr Downes said.

With all the buzz surrounding Shanghai’s L+SNOW resort, there is potential to “positively influence” public perception of China's commitment to climate action, by showcasing its investment in sustainable technologies and practices, he added. 

“It can serve as a model for sustainable tourism by demonstrating that recreational facilities can be developed and operated in an environmentally responsible manner … (and) inspire other tourism projects to adopt similar practices, contributing to a greener and more sustainable tourism industry in China,” he said. 

“Balancing profitability with environmental responsibility is a key priority for any modern venue,” Mr Downes said. “Any responsible operator will strive to achieve this through long-term sustainability planning and investing in energy efficiency.” 

“While it requires upfront investment, energy-efficient technology ultimately reduces operational costs and environmental impact.”

Mr Greg Dingle, a researcher and educator focusing on sport and climate change at La Trobe Business School, questioned the sustainability of indoor ski resorts especially amid China’s climate pledges.

“Producing temperatures indoors that are cold enough for ski activities requires energy, lots of energy,” Mr Dingle said.

“Given the energy-intensity and likely tourist visitation of indoor ski resorts, my assessment is that they are likely not environmentally sustainable.” 

Other experts like Mr Liu Daizhong, East Asia director at the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), noted severe environmental impacts which come with indoor ski resorts that use significantly higher energy and water consumption as compared to traditional outdoor ski lodges and resorts. 

“Climate change has a significant impact on the ski tourism industry,” Mr Liu told CNA, adding that indoor resorts were expected to operate all year round and “rely entirely on artificial snowmaking and cooling systems” which could lead to substantial electricity and water consumption. 

“Without effective energy-saving technologies, large-scale energy-intensive facilities like this could weaken China's efforts to achieve its carbon neutrality goals,” Mr Liu said. 

Citing the example that if Chinese skiers are required to commute in a carbon-neutral manner to the resort, and stay in carbon-neutral accommodations, Mr Dingle believes it “perhaps is possibly consistent with the 2030 and 2060 climate commitments.”

When asked how L+SNOW resort could serve as a model for sustainable tourism, the operator told CNA that consumers in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai previously had to fly to snowfields in Northeast China or even farther abroad, which “generated considerable carbon emissions during the trip.”

“But now, they don't need to travel far to go skiing, making it more economical and energy-saving.”

Mr Ma, the ski instructor, says he sees a bright future for winter sports in China.

“Indoor ski resorts will have a positive impact ... it's not limited by seasons or weather, allowing more people to experience the joy of skiing at any time,” he said. 

“Skiing should focus more on popularising and promoting the sport to encourage greater participation, while simultaneously raising public awareness about environmental protection, contributing collectively to the preservation of our planet.”