| CORNER SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT |
| ARCHIVES / INTERNATIONAL FORUM, January 19th 2007 |
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Often the risk with conferences, whether it is statements about good intentions and inspiring examples, is that big words are said but none of it is put into action... However, in the case of the First International Forum " Wintersports resorts for a better world " which took place in Avoriaz on January 19th 2007, things were different, because those who organised it, the resort Avoriaz and the group Pierre&Vacances have several projects which offer the speakers a big stage and give just as much reason to put into practice the ideas drawn from the different round tables which are outlined below.
Today, the emergence of new risks and opportunities make it relevant for mountain resorts to develop a strategy for the protection of the environment as well as for sustainable development. Two important risk elements :
In the French, Austrian, Swiss and German Alps where 60 to 80 million tourists spend their holiday each year, the recent rise in temperatures was almost three times higher than average. This risk does not threaten France too much at present, a country where ski areas are mostly above 1 200m altitude; but 10% of European alpine resorts of medium or big size operate already in precarious conditions. In addition, the theory of the rise in temperatures increases the number of ski areas that do not benefit from reliable snow. This issue concerns the environment just as much as the economy, seeing that a substantial part of the revenu comes from winter tourism trade (in Austria for example this amounts to half of the revenu of the tourism sector, representing 4,5% of the national economy) and that certain actions (especially energy or water economies) have a direct impact upon the cost of management. - Bernard Cressens from WWF France adds that the Alps represent a natural habitat of worldwide biodiveristy and that wintersports activities (enlargement and fitting out of ski areas, motorised leisure activities, etc.) can pose a threat to the fauna and flora of the Alps. (*Climate change in the European Alps – adapting winter tourism and natura hazards management) Opportunities : - Tourists are more and more aware of these aspects when chosing their holiday destination: Some of those active in this area, like for example the French association Mountain Riders and the Ski Club of Great Britain have thus established a guide book addressed to the general public which presents those ski resorts that are most committed to environmental management standards (ISO 140001 or EMAS), the management of water and energy, the sorting and recycling of waste, reducing transport, eco construction, the use of renewable energies and again raising awareness for the environment amongst tourists. Moreover, tourists are more and more inclined to take these questions into consideration: according to Ulrike Pröbstl from Pro Natura Pro Ski, 15 to 20% of tourists of certain European countries consider the environment as a decisive factor for the choice of their holiday destination, while 30 to 40% say that they could be influenced if more information was made available to them. Maria Outters, Research and Innovation manager at Pierre&Vacances, confirmed this trend, at the same time pointing out that tourists (especially those from Northern Europe) react in a very positive way to initiatives that aim to protect the environment taken by Pierre&Vacances at its different holiday destinations. - Organisers of international events are also very keen on chosing their sites according to their commitment to environmental protection: The Olympic Committee for instance decided to make envrionmental protection the third criteria, which helped for example the Canadian resort Whistler to get the Winter Olympics 2010, while Val d'Isère won the 2009 World Championships with their project " Car-free championships " certified with the environmental management standard ISO 14001.
Most of the discussion rounds were dedicated to feedback reports from innovative mountain resorts (Aspen Snowmass in Colorado, Whistler Blackcomb in Canada, Saas Fee in Switzerland, Werfenweng in Austria...) which revealed key factors for taking these steps successfully : - The inclusion of these aspects into the long term strategy of the resort: several speakers underlined the importance of the double necessity to start first of all by recognising the problems the resort is faced with, especially those concerning climate change, but at the same time to go beyond short term solutions (i.e. resorting to snowmaking) in order to think about long term approaches (i.e. diversification of the holiday offer to provide alternatives to " all skiing holidays " with other sporting, cultural, relaxation and summer activities). - The development of a concrete plan of action for the day to day running of the resort :
- The opening of talks with the parties involved and the building of partnerships with those who play an active role in the mountains (tour operators, local authorities, providers of energy and payments of waste, local environmental associations, etc.): in this context, Pierre&Vacances has entered a partnership with the NGO WWF and works closely on these issues with the Tourist Office of Avoriaz; Whistler Blackcomb has worked on a strategy with 16 task groups involving all its public services; the SERMA works with the organising committee of the World Championships in Val d'Isère on the experience linked to the application of the standard ISO 14001; the National Ski Area's Association has created a Sustainable Slopes charter in 2000, based on the consultation of more than 1000 participants which gives rise to exchange of knowledge between the 180 resorts involved; the association Alpine Pearls brings together several European resorts which are actively involved in soft mobility, a programme financed by the EU... Many speakers underlined the necessity of having to think of the mountain as a geographical area, its global nature, which suggests for example an intermunicipal approach to problems... and to their solutions! Beaucoup d’intervenants ont souligné notamment la nécessité de penser la montagne comme un territoire, dans sa globalité, ce qui suppose par exemple une approche intercommunale des problèmes… et des solutions ! - The putting into place of a lobbying policy with public statements taken by resorts or communes in order to ask for stricter laws when it comes to important issues like climate change where the actions of individual resorts are indispensable but insufficiant. - The need to think about other aspects of sustainable development, especially in the social and human field (with for instance the challenges linked to local unemployment, seasonnairs accommodation, etc.) and in the economic field (especially concerning local economic development). - And finally, the importance to turn this approach into a source of innovation and differentiation, in order to motivate the employees of those businesses and organisations involved, to attract more tourists and to encourage loyalty, to turn these measures into an element of image for the resort (Aspen and Werfenweng have received many prices for their measures which gives them a lot of positive media coverage), and to assure the economic durability of activities. |
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