As wintery weather begins to hit North America and many areas, including my own have seen it’s first snowfall, it’s pretty astounding how grumpy people can get about seeing snow. The truth though is that once upon a time what we are experiencing now was known as ‘normal’. Despite the recent earlier than we’re used to arrival of snow, cold and winter, for more and more people the sight of accumulating snow in the winter is becoming rare.
Above average temperatures and a resultant lack of snow seem to be commonplace in many parts of Canada and the U.S. over the past few winters. This has lead many people to express their joy at being able to walk around without heavy coats or boots and at how they haven’t had to drive in poor weather or shovel their driveways. Despite all these supposed advantages that milder winter weather is bringing about, there is a very important question that needs to be asked: is the lack of snow we’ve been experiencing actually a good thing?
While the answer to some degree can depend on a multitude of factors, the generally acceptable response is that the lack of snow in areas where snow usually falls is NOT a good thing. The reasons for this are multiple.
AGRICULTURE
Farmers need snow, plain and simple. They need snow to blanket their fields so that when it all melts in the spring, their fields are properly irrigated and ready for planting. A lack of moisture in the soil right from the outset is very problematic and can force farmers in severe situations to either reduce their plantings or in a worst case scenario, not plant at all. Around this time last winter Alberta’s Agriculture Minister, Evan Berger shared his concerns about the lack of snowfall so far that year in Alberta and made headlines for doing so.
Snow is also necessary for farmers that plant certain crops in the fall. Winter wheat that is planted in the prairies need to be blanketed in snow in order to provide insulation from extreme cold. When these crops are exposed to the elements, they become vulnerable to frost which can kill the crop outright. Other crops that are planted in the fall require snow to protect the seeds from predators like birds.
ECONOMY
When a lack of snow contributes to agricultural shortages, the end result is often that the prices for food will rise. Under the laws of supply and demand, a reduced supply will cause increased demand which then drives the price up. When we start seeing higher prices for basic food staples due to a lack of snow fall months earlier, it affects us in ways we don’t initially expect.
There are also various industries that need snow for survival. Many ski resorts across North America have been struggling for years now to make the most of a difficult situation. While a number of resorts utilize snow making to keep trails white, it’s less expensive to have natural snow fall than to make snow yourself. Many of the much larger resorts out west don’t use snow making since they usually have an abundance of snow, but when it’s in short supply, they need to close parts of their resort due to a lack of coverage. Last winter it was reported that most North American ski resorts experienced about a 15% drop in visitors compared to what they normally would receive.
The good news/bad news aspect of this situation is that the lack of snow this season is something resort operators are getting used to. Back in the winter of 2006/2007 Ontario’s largest ski resort Blue Mountain was actually forced to completely shut down for a period of almost 2 weeks between the end of December and early January. The folks at Blue Mountain have told me that they have learned a lot in the years since about how to stockpile snow when able as a means of keeping trails viable in periods where snow isn’t falling. They said that despite having the best snow making system in Canada, they will always far prefer a healthy dump of mother nature’s finest. At bare minimum the folks at Blue Mountain want cold and consistent temperatures since with their snowmaking capabilities alone, they can cover 98% of their trail system.
It’s also important to note that a lack of snow in cities plays a big psychological problem for resorts since potential visitors often think that just because there is no snow in the city that the same must be the case on the slopes, which of course isn’t true.
There are many other industries who’s viability relies heavily on snow. snow plow drivers, retailers of winter equipment such as snow blowers and shovels, road salt suppliers and more all require snow to maintain their business.
While the ability to drive on roads free of snow, and the novelty of walking around without heavy coats and winter gear in late December or early January certainly has some appeal, lets always remember the universal law of science that states “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”
Snow is a natural part of the ecological cycle in this part of the world and when we start seeing the cycle becoming all messed up, the consequences begin to pile up which can be far more problematic than the pile up of snow at the end of our driveway that by and large we haven’t had to deal with much over the past few winters.
When you really think of things in the big picture, we really shouldn’t be complaining about having to break out the shovels before Christmas, now should we?
Daddy
Thank you for this article. My wife and I are newlywed and just moved into our first house in Utah and both grew up in sunny San Diego. We constantly complained about cold weather and snow. I just bought a $15 snow shovel feeling “ughh I’ve got to shovel this burden of snow off my driveway every year now.” Reading this article has changed my negative perspective. When it’s time to shovel, I no longer go out with a grunt but go out feeling grateful for the good weather we’ve had. So, thank you!
Thanks Jared! I really appreciate the comment and I’m really glad you found this perspective helpful. San Diego is obviously a great place to live, but in time I’m sure you’ll not only get used to the snow but really come to appreciate and even enjoy it! Utah certainly has plenty of opportunities to make the most of winter, so I’m glad your perspective on that frozen stuff from the sky has now changed. Cheers!
Thank you Eric for posting this… just coming across it now. I’m often asked by people who seem happy with the warm winter weather why it makes me so concerned. I have a much clearer answer for them now.
Keep up the great work!
Thanks Ann for the comments. It’s important for people to understand that in the grand scheme of things, there are higher priorities than personal convenience when it comes to weather and climate. I’m glad you found this useful.
It makes sense that ski resorts rely on snow to ensure that they stay in business. I would assume that they use snow reports or something of that nature to help them understand how much snow there is and how much there will be. There would certainly be a lot of benefits knowing when it will snow and how much so that way you could plan accordingly with your staff and things like that.
There is nothing wrong with being able to count on “normal” weather to base your business on…and where winter is concerned, snow is supposed to be normal in a lot of the world. Thanks for your comments!
Thnx helped for my PROJECT
Thank you! So many people have no clue, think we are just “complaining” for lack of a better or worse word, as they themselves put it when we speak up and out for the environment. Keep posting! Interesting and I’m sharing it.
Organic, non gmo, and cleaning the water this Spring with intentional efforts not just pleasure seeking for boating.. giving back to the water.
Thanks so much! It helped me with my homework i had 1 day to do it!
Thank you so much!
My pleasure! I’m glad you found the article helpful.
is snow like, cold.
yes, snow is cold. “Cemore Butts”
You never now. Sometimes it is just the wind.
Mexico is mostly warm, except the top of vulcanoes, Chihuahua and the tall parts of the Eastern and Western Mother ranges.
Yeah some people dont like snow and I’m sure most people would not like having snow here, but at some point I really would love having lots of snow because that would mean having a lot of big lakes and perennial navigable rivers just as the Eastern U.S. and Canada do.
This helped with my essay, thx!
My pleasure! I’m glad you found the information to be helpful!
Like rain, snow cleans the air that man dirties…
I am from India particulalrly from the southern part of India from a city called Hyderabad. For us snowfall is a subject of curiosity and we can experience it in India only if we visit the upper part of Himalayas which most of us never do in our lifetime when it snows!! Your article on snow is very similar to our discussion of the summer heat. For us the monsoon that follows soon after the summer is the source of water for our farmers and it is generally believed if the summer is very severe then it is good for the monsoon since the hot climate evaporates the sea water and brings it back as good monsoon after summer. Like your description of the severe snow condition in winter . we also have similar discussion on the severe summer condition with temperatures soaring and every one forced indoor with coolers and air conditioners!!
As you can observe nature has a real balancing effect all around.
Thanks for your comment and for providing your interesting and unique perspective. It’s greatly appreciated!
Finally a simple well informed article, easy to read and easy to understand without all the hogwash of hard to understand lingo….thank you…I often wondered why we needed snow…personally I don’t care for it as I once did as a child, but after reading this am glad we finally got our snow….it’s only going to last about 4 months so I’m hoping time doesn’t play a factor into it…we went one year without snow, people were tanning in December in Alberta…I thought it great but I’m assuming it was hard on the farmers…now I can once again look forward to snow 🙂
Thank you, Patricia for your feedback. I’m glad you found it helpful.
Ok FL and other warm states do not get snow and their fields and crops are just fine. Saying snow is need from crops make no scene to me.. I even heard people say it cleanse the earth again that makes no sense Warm states are just fine with out snow.. Got to stop listening to out dated information .. Just my thought on the snow ..
Barbara, agriculture in warmer climates is not the same as agriculture in colder climates. You can’t compare say, citrus crops with grains or root vegetables as the climate required for each to survive is naturally different. Colder climate crops benefit from snow as they act as a barrier to predators with seeds planted in fall for spring harvest. The also provide ample moisture for spring planting and enhance fields in fallow. Climate change is creating a ‘new normal’ and the adverse affects because of it are noticeable everywhere, especially in agriculture. Thanks for your comment.
Hi! I come from chinese. There is a heavy fall of snow every winter in my hometown. It was a happy time of my childhood.
Thank You for this article it is useful for my research about snow/winter. I’m from Philippines.. I’m not very familiar because we don’t experience winter.. I wish i could experience winter… Sir Eric Novak Thanks a lot
Thanks to the author for such an easy to understand article for the 4th grader as i was looking for his assignment. I am sure that helped me helping doing the project nicely for my little one. Thanks again.
I’m glad that you found it helpful! Good luck on the assignment.
Thanks for this down to earth, easy to understand article. I will be sharing “the benefits of snow” highlights with a 3rd and 4th grade environmental club as we make snowflakes out of recycled paper and plastic loops that hold packs of pop together!
My pleasure Kathy! I’m glad you found it helpful and as I have a pair of 4th Graders at home who totally understood this article, I’m sure your club will as well. Cheers!
Snow is an insulator from the weather it lower your heating bill
Despite many Canadians liking this warm winter without snow, it’s, as you say, not good. The lack of cold along with the snow allows bark beetles to survive and with trees stressed with drought (no snow) they are more susceptible to the beetle as well as to forest fires. Ontario burned through over 630,000 hectares of forest last year (the 10 year average is 76,000). This burning didn’t even hit major news stories.
Thanks Lee, and great points! There are so many reasons why we need to embrace the seasons as they should be. When we begin to alter our climate so that we don’t see seasons as we should, we need to prepare for many cosequences that make not having to wear full winter gear seem rather petty by comparison.
Don’t forget forest fires and the inability of wildlife to feed themselves due to low berry crops, etc. And we need cold weather to make ice on our lakes and snow to insulate and keep that ice to reduce evaporation. Even the fish need the ice and insulating snow to survive properly. So yes, we need snow and while everyone is thrilled not to have to shovel much this year, we will feel the impacts everywhere.
Well said Bonnie…and thanks for contributing!
Thank you for this article. I have been telling people this information but they do not seem to listen. Snow is part of our precious environment and we need it for balance. Spring feed ponds and lakes are in desperate need of snow to make sure there is enough moisture for well and the level of the ponds and lakes.
Thanks Pamela! It’s natural for people to like it when the weather is mild, but people like you and I need to remind everyone that everything happens for a reason! I appreciate your comment and your feedback!