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Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1484213
British Columbia who's done climate mod- elling for many of Western Canada's ski resorts, Zincton would not likely get to see out its 60-year lease as a ski-only operation. "It's a good place to make a resort if your business model is that this resort is going to be running over the next 40 years," says Pidwirny. "But beyond that, temperatures are going to increase. Snowfall may not necessarily change that much, but you're going to go from the highly sought-after powder-type snow to snow that's more wet. By the end of the 21st century, this proposed ski resort is going to have climate conditions that are more like Sas- quatch Resort, near Abbotsford." (Sasquatch Mountain Resort is a rebrand of the defunct Hemlock Valley ski area, which just got a $1.5-billion expansion plan approved but has suffered extremely difficult snow con- ditions and low visitation for over a decade.) That said, Zincton would be better posi- tioned climate-wise than most resorts in B.C. for the time it is viable, and might be able to pick up business from those that will be more drastically warmed. "Don't forget," Pidwirny adds, "all these coastal resorts, their conditions are going to get even worse, like the trouble Cypress [Mountain Resort] is having with freezing levels. Many of the big ski resorts along the west coast of the United States will be inun- dated with an increase in the number of rainy days. And, you know, it'll be very rare to get good snow conditions where you can enjoy the skiing." A GOOD FIGHT? Zincton also has a few controversies loom- ing. Most notably, the plan has no visible support from First Nations, and at least two of those that claim London Ridge—the Ktu- naxa and Autonomous Sinixt—have voiced direct opposition. Harley, meanwhile, is adamant in his assertion that the only First Nation with reasonable claim to the Zincton area is the larger Sinixt Nation (the Autono- mous Sinixt are an independent group within the Slocan Valley), the majority of whom live on the Colville Reservation in Washing- ton State. This may be splitting hairs, however, since Matriarch Marilyn James—of the Slocan Valley—is still listed as a spokesperson for the Sinixt at large, and she opposes the development. Next are concerns over wildlife: Zinc- ton would bisect the north-south corridor between the Goat Range and Kokanee pro- vincial parks, which many credible experts and environmental organizations (like the Valhalla Wilderness Society) say would cut off vital habitat to grizzlies, wolverines and goats, among other species. In response, Harley says that bears sleep during the winter, and the wildlife reserve will protect them in the summer. He cites an environ- mental report he had commissioned, and argues that most animals don't migrate over the winter, plus the mine-tailings cleanup would, in fact, improve habitat. But there's also a cabal of local ski-tourers already using this area on its own terms to consider, many of whom have backcountry skied here without lifts their whole lives and don't want to see these mountains developed. Harley calls this group "elite," and dismisses them as maintaining a stubborn Kootenay tradition of opposition to all development, no matter how sensible. His conviction is that Zincton would allow more people to enjoy the area, reducing the barrier to entry for those looking for a lift-assisted introduction to the backcountry, and would be "inclusive." But perhaps the biggest hurdle is a Janu- ary 2022 letter from the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure outlin- ing a litany of technical problems with the proposal, as drawn by Whistler ski-resort planning firm Brent Harley & Associates (no relation). It outlines concern about interfer- ence with the highway avalanche-control program, and also about the inadequacy of Highway 31A to support a traffic increase— and a reciprocal question of who would pay for upgrades. On this, Harley simply says, "We're working with [them]." This all means that Zincton, and future resort proposals like it, aren't just about what's viable in our changing climate, or to investors, but also about what the public wants. If they let him build it, will either even come? n R E C R E A T I O N Jumbo Glacier Resort After three decades of fighting between the developer and environmental groups and the Ktunaxa First Nation, the embattled plan to build a sprawling mega- resort in the heart of the pristine Jumbo Valley near Invermere met its ultimate demise. In 2020, the federal government approved an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area where the resort would have gone. Valemount Glacier Destination Based out of the town of the same name, this Euro-style glacier-strewn proposal was approved in 2017 with support from First Nations, quite a bit of fanfare from skiers and no environmental upset. Designed by Italian architect Oberto Oberti (of Jumbo Glacier Resort infamy), VGD has yet to secure enough investment to break ground. Garibaldi at Squamish An all-season ski resort slated for Brohm Ridge, the plan has yet to go to the provincial government for approval. Critics say the climate no longer supports viable skiing in this area. Sun Peaks Resort In 2013, the Adams Lake Indian Band lost an ongoing court battle to block Sun Peaks, near Kamloops, from expanding. In 2015, the resort added a new chairlift and 500 acres to become the second-largest in the province, behind Whistler Blackcomb. ROCKY ROADS A brief history of hopeful ski-area proposals in B.C. Valemount Glacier Destination Sun Peaks Resort NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2022 BCBUSINESS 39 TOP: OBERTI ARCHITECTURE; BOTTOM: CRISTINA GAREAU/SUN PEAKS RESORT