Management, winter climate and plant–soil feedbacks on ski slopes: a synthesis

Abstract

Owing to the increasing popularity of skiing and the upslope movement of the snow reliability line in mountain regions, more and more alpine environments are being turned into skiing areas, with strong impacts on ecosystem functions and biodiversity. Creation and management of ski slopes cause physical disturbance to soil and vegetation, while (artificial) snow supplements affect soil structure, chemistry, moisture and temperature regimes as well as shifts in snow season and growing season length. Vegetation–soil feedbacks may influence the outcome of these interactive effects on soil and vegetation, with possible consequences for soil erosion. Moreover, climate warming will lead to changing snow cover and duration, which will interact with ski slope management effects on soil and vegetation and its feedbacks. Based on a conceptual framework we review the main elements of these interactive effects on soil and vegetation on new and established ski slopes. We also set a research agenda with specific studies that could further advance our understanding of interacting ski slope management, winter climate, vegetation–soil feedbacks and ecosystem functioning. In such new investigations, alpine climate change ecology can probably learn much from the “experimental” disturbance and snow manipulations on ski slopes and vice versa.

Snow cover duration and extent for Great Britain in a changing climate: Altitudinal variations and synoptic‐scale influences

“…Snow presence therefore affects differential survival rates of plant species and hence distribution of vegetation communities, with snow-melt timing representing a key stage in growth cycles of arctic-alpine plants (Keller et al, 2005;Cutler, 2011;Gottfried et al, 2011). Snow cover protects the ground from subaerial weathering and erosion associated with freeze-thaw and water runoff, including possible additional damage from human or animal trampling (Meijer zu Schlochtern et al, 2014). However, snow cover may also concentrate deposition of atmospheric pollutants with consequent impacts on soil, plant, and aquatic communities (Dore et al, 1992;Helliwell et al, 1998).…”

Sustainable Soil Management in Ski Areas: Threats and Challenges

“…During construction, considerable changes take place in the soil's physical, chemical and biological properties [28]. This influences the establishment and development of plant communities which in return affects both the biotic and abiotic soil environment and the entire alpine ecosystem [15,28,29].…”

“…This influences the establishment and development of plant communities which in return affects both the biotic and abiotic soil environment and the entire alpine ecosystem [15,28,29]. Therefore, restoration techniques have a crucial role to play in the success of damage mitigation and the rehabilitation of damaged ecosystems.…”

“…As a rule of thumb, early melting sites have richer soil than late melting sites [31]. In early melting sites, there are a greater number of species together with a higher rate of litter decomposition, humus content and microbial activity [28,31]. With excessively compacted snow cover, snow duration can be prolonged by an average of 2 weeks.…”

“…These species are hardly adapted to ski slopes and can have competitive advantages over native species during the first years, which can delay or inhibit the establishment of native vegetation and the related biodiversity. Soil quality can subsequently be altered as the decomposition of litter dominated by grasses can take twice as long compared to forb-dominated plant communities which influences the nutrient discharge of the soil [28].…”