Abstract. In order to investigate the seasonal and geographical distribution of snow concentrations and deposition fluxes of environmentally relevant ionic species in the Alps, the international program SNOSP was initiated. In the framework of this program, intercomparisons of snow sampling SO4-,K ,Na +,NH +, techniques and analytical methods to determine the ionic species CI-, NO~, ' + Mg -'+, and Ca 2+ , as well as the pH and the specific conductivity were performed. The concentrations of these species in the snow samples collected in the SNOSP program varied by orders of magnitude with, e.g., concentrations of NO 3, SO~-, and NH + ranging from 0.2-60, 0.2-90, and 0.1-60 iLeq L -t, respectively. The intercomparisons revealed a reasonable agreement of the determinations of the species CI-, NO 3 , SOl-, Na +, and NH + in snow. Results were less satisfactory for K +, Mg e+, Ca 2+, and H +, mainly due to the very low concentrations. In conclusion, recommendations are formulated for the reliable derivation of chemical inventories from snow packs.