“China did not have to move mountains to organize the games. But it did have to flood a dry riverbed, pump water from a reservoir supplying Beijing, and relocate hundreds of farming families to organize one of the most complex snowmaking operations in the history of the Olympics.” writes the New York Times. The runs, descents and races, which we have been watching for several days, take place practically only on artificial snow. And when the transmission operator shows the view from a wider perspective, you can clearly see that the white lines are actually single lines or squiggles drawn among brown mountains or forests.
The International Olympic Committee chose a country that simply lacks white powder as the organizer of the Olympic competition.
Water supplies comparable to Niger
The use of artificial snow during sports competitions is of course already the norm. In many winter sports centers, snow cannons are ready, often supplementing the routes on which competitions in many competitions take place. However, water is needed to produce artificial snow. What distinguishes China in this respect is its limited stocks.
The rapidly expanding economy has sucked out the groundwater to a large extent. The “New York Times” cites data from five years ago (no newer ones), which show that already then Beijing had about as much fresh water per capita as the West African Niger located on the edge of the Sahara (approx. 36,000 gallons). For comparison, the US calculated 2.3 million gallons per person.
400 Olympic swimming pools – for the start!
How much water did the Chinese use to produce artificial snow? Officially, it is not known. TechnoAlpin, the company responsible for the aid, admitted that it initially required around one million cubic meters of water, enough to fill 400 Olympic swimming pools. But as the Games go on, the needs will only increase.
How was the water transported? The authorities built special pumping stations. State television reported that the water flowed from – and more precisely from the city’s Baihebao reservoir – the bed of the Guishui River, which dries up in winter, which flows near the Olympic grounds. Previously, it was supplied from the Miyun Reservoir, one of the largest clean water storage facilities for households in the Chinese capital.
Nobody was taking any account of the inhabitants. Some were relocated to build a network of canals. Farmers were turned off the irrigation of the fields, and at the end they were ordered to take away those who lived in the area of the present Olympic facilities.
A sad future for winter sports
The Chinese use almost 300 fan-driven snow cannons during the competition – they also need to be cooled. And while President Xi Jinping has promised greener games, organizers say all Olympic venues use renewable energy to minimize carbon footprint, and government has also planted tens of thousands of trees, experts say That it is still not enough.
“Almost 100 percent reliance on artificial snow means that the Games landed in a place that is not suitable from a climate point of view,” says Madeleine Orr, an environmental scientist at Loughborough University in the UK, in an interview with Time.
This year’s games will be played almost entirely on artificial snow. This is not only a question of China, but also a sign of the times associated with global warming. Already four years ago we wrote on Sport.pl in an article entitled: “The winters in the Alps are now shorter by a month than a half century ago. Without snow storage and equipment for its production, the start of the season cannot be imagined. Professionals lament themselves, amateurs are also becoming dependent on new technologies – Up to 600 meters above sea level there will be no more snow – climatologists forecast.
Source: Sport
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
