Even The Black Slopes Are Green: My Eco-friendly Skiing Break In Austria

The carbon footprint of a skiing holiday can be as deep as a crevasse, but one Austrian resort with sustainability at its heart is mitigating its impact

The view takes me aback. Not the panorama of 80 snow-capped, jagged peaks that top 3,000 metres, nor the lone skier carving perfect turns down a forest-fringed piste. They are lovely, of course, but the important view, the one that few winter sports enthusiasts will ever get to see, is behind a nondescript door next to the bakery that’s tucked beside the ski lift station in the bottom of this valley. In here may lie the answer to the question that brought me to Austria’s SkiWelt region: is it possible to ski green?

I’ve always been a sceptic on that front. Skiing feels like the greatest possible waste of earthly resources for the benefit of a privileged few. From its consumer-porn stores filled with the latest in space-age clothing to its ugly clanking lifts, overheated hotels and casual use of helicopters, the entire industry is one giant middle finger to a burning planet, isn’t it?