 Poster: A snowHead
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Following the long hot summer in the Alps, The Mairie d' Aime at the heart of the Tarentaise valley has introduced water use restrictions including a hose pipe ban and washing of vehicles.
What the impact on snowmaking will be for the coming season remains to be seen 
Have any French based snowHeads had their water use resticted yet?
Details from Aime here:
http://www.ville-aime.fr/news/index.php?id_news=257
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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this seems to happen a lot - there's been a long-term problem of below average rainfall, I believe.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Boredsurfing, No not here, but we get mountain run-off during the summer, accessible from points in the garden - useful for water gardens, washing cars, filling swimming pools etc (not that I ever do any of those things!)
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I believed La Plagnes snow making system used water from the various high altitude reservoirs built for that purpose.
Washing my black VW outside our chalet in 1800 last week of 2007 season just caused a lot of steam
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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T-Dub, Never wash a black car 
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Just a thought about this, as resorts build more reservoirs that they want to fill up between seasons won't that mean less water in the summers for the areas as it going into these reservoirs.....?
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charliwest, Hopefully those reservoirs are being filled by meltwater which would normally run straight down into the rivers and then out to sea. If you take the river Isere for example it has a massve course but these days probably only a third full even in May.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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There is already one high level reservoir in Les Saisies and they're building another, but in both cases water will be pumped UP into them at cheap power rates, so that the cannons will be fed by gravity. There's a biggish lake at the bottom of the slopes, which is presumably mostly naturally fed, but at times when a lot of artificial snow is needed (which has not been the case in recent years) I can imagine supplies could well be an issue.
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This must make La Rosiere the greenest reort in the area: Low power requirement due to slow lifts, no stealing all the water as they have no reservoir.....or cannons 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Frosty the Snowman, yeah, but there is the extra fuel needed to piste out those 10m snowfalls of fresh powder
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Frosty the Snowman, you're right, all the village's water comes from mountain sources, we even have our own water company. Although the lift company did build a new pumping station last year for the new snow cannons.
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| charliwest wrote: |
| Just a thought about this, as resorts build more reservoirs that they want to fill up between seasons won't that mean less water in the summers for the areas as it going into these reservoirs.....? |
Yes that is the case. If the resorts keep more water for themselves there is less downstream. This has already caused a number of problems.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Boredsurfing wrote: |
Following the long hot summer in the Alps, The Mairie d' Aime at the heart of the Tarentaise valley has introduced water use restrictions including a hose pipe ban and washing of vehicles.
What the impact on snowmaking will be for the coming season remains to be seen
Have any French based snowHeads had their water use resticted yet?
Details from Aime here:
http://www.ville-aime.fr/news/index.php?id_news=257 |
I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. Beyond seeing a couple of notices posted up on the Mairie, it hasn't had any actual effect. The 4 bassins (cattle troughs) within 100m of my house still have running water 24hrs/day and the neighbours are happily washing their cars and watering the plants.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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dbx, although thats not taking into consideration other parts of the drainage basin. I wonder what effect it has on arable farmers out of the mountains, where their crops will likely to be recieving much less water I would imagine as its being stored and reused in the mountains.
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