Unsustainable Snow-Making in a Changing Climate: A Satellite-Based Assessment of Artificial Snow-Making Basins in the Veneto Dolomiti Superski Area

Climate change is profoundly reshaping mountain environments, with the Alps among the most vulnerable regions in Europe. The thesis explores global warming effects on the ski industry and the adaptation strategies adopted by ski operators, with a specific focus on artificial snow-making basins. As snow reliability declines and temperature increases, artificial basins succeed in storing great amounts of water to quickly produce snow. Nevertheless, while the artificial snow machine offers short-term solutions, it raises significant environmental and socioeconomic concerns. The thesis presents the Veneto Dolomiti Superski area as a case study and, through satellite images analysis, identifies the artificial basins that have been built in the area since 2007. The findings reveal trends in constructing larger basins at higher altitudes, reflecting the industry's attempt to adapt to warming conditions and to maintain competitiveness. However, this strategy exacerbates ecological degradation, landscape disruption, and public resource allocation issues, overlooking local communities and welfare needs. The thesis frames the case study within a wider critique of ski-centred development models, highlighting the commodification of nature and the social hierarchies embedded in the industry. It argues that the current There Is No Alternative approach undermines a paradigm shift and keeps ski stakeholders within the tourism as development mentality. Rather, the thesis claims for a systemic rethinking of the present models of development, emphasizing the vulnerability of the ski industry and the obstacles for building resilient futures in mountain areas.