Reported by Staff

State conservation and business leaders gathered this week  amid growing concern that Colorado’s $2 billion winter sports industry and millions of acres of forests are threatened by the effcts of climate change.

Auden Schendler of the Aspen Skiing Corporation told the group that shorter winters and warm weather that brings rain rather than snow could mean big trouble for Colorado’s ski areas.

Winter temperatures have not been anywhere cold enough to kill off the bark beetle infestation of roughly 3 million acreas of pine trees in the state. Without periods of subzero weather, the beetles will continue their onslaught, according to a spokesperson for the Colorado State Forest Service.

Schendler pointed out that his company has taken several steps to become more energy efficient and reduce emissions. But it is only a start. Shorter winters are a big concern because March is when ski resorts make money, and without it, they could go out of business. It is also more difficult to make snow when the weather is warmer.

The National Wildlife Federation released a report Monday on climate change titled “Odd-ball Winter Weather: Global Warming’s Wake-up Call for the Northern United States.

“What matters most is getting people in Washington to know that we care about this,” Schendler said.

Caught in the issue’s crosshairs is Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., who was criticized for joining a congressional caucus on coal. He represents western Colorado, which includes Aspen/Snowmass and other ski resorts. A spokesperson for Salazar said he joined the new caucus for representatives from coal-producing states because his district includes 3,000 workers in the industry.

That doesn’t help him with people like Schendler, who said the politician shouldn’t try any fund-raising in towns like Aspen or Telluride. Critics also point to Salazar’s vote against the climate change bill passed last year in the U.S. House of Representatives. Eric Wortman, the Salazar spokesperson, said the representative thought the bill was too expensive.