'Devastation' as another European ski resort closes due to vanishing snow

Another French ski resort has been forced to close its doors after years of experiencing consistently low snow levels, which have severely impacted its operations

A popular French Alpine ski resort has had to close due to a lack of snow - the latest in a string to fall foul of a warming climate.

Declining levels of snow over the past two years have meant that the Alpe du Grand Serre ski resort has suffered significant losses and lack of investment. Local councillors have votes to not reopen Alpe du Grande Serre in the Isère this winter, as they could no longer pay for the mountain lifts to complete a programme to diversity the resort as an all-year attraction.

The decision will cause 200 people to lose their jobs and hit businesses in the nearby village of La Morte, which depends on the tourism of winter sports, reports The Guardian. A local sports shop owner, Lauranne Vincent, said to France 3 television: “We are devastated and shocked. It’s a brutal decision coming two months before we were due to open. We were hoping the opposite would happen. We said all lights were green to go.”

Frédérique Laurence, the owner of a grocery shop in La Morte village, added: “We’ve been left completely in the lurch. We still have loans to pay as we’ve only been here four years. Who will pay them? Our lives have been ruined. That’s what is going to happen to us.”

Since 2021, the local authority has spent almost €3 million (£2.5 million) on attempts to keep the resort open all year round, by attracting hikers and cyclists to the area. But it has now announced that it does not have the money to continue with the project for the final two years before completion was due.

President of the local authority, Coraline Saurat, shared the "unfortunate conclusion". The closure has sparked calls for the state to invest in threatened ski resorts as 180 smaller French ski resorts have been forced to close since the 1970s.

“The state is not giving us any concrete support for the future of the resort or for a transitional operation,” said Saurat. “Is it up to local authorities to run the stations? That’s a real question today. I don’t think we’re up to the challenges we represent.”

The Alpe du Grand Serre ski resort is made up of six villages at an altitude of 1,368 metres and is a 45 minute drive from Grenoble. The resort originally opened 85 years ago, making it the second-oldest in the region. The resort also has 35 miles of slopes, three chairlifts and 10 drag lifts.

Another resort of similar altitude and nestled in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Grand Puy, has also announced its closure. The Grand Puy ski resort had 13.7 miles of ski slopes and five lifts.