Hitting the slopes this season is not for the squeamish at one Arizona ski resort
Don’t eat yellow snow.
Good advice. But don’t eat ANY snow if you happen to ski the Snowbowl in Flagstaff, AZ, this season.
This year, the Snowbowl’s artificial snow will contain all kinds of extras — antibiotics, hormones, prescription drugs and a variety of other chemicals.
And what makes this snow’s content so diverse? It’s a secret ingredient you won’t find in any other man-made snow: sewage.
Nice!
Of course, the sewage has been treated. And authorities claim the wastewater source meets a standard “just below” drinking water.
They must think that sounds reassuring. And yet… not so much.
A scientist who tested the snow says there’s no way to predict what effect freezing and thawing will have on the chemicals. And they don’t know what effect UV rays from sunlight might have.
But they do know that some of the chemicals will reach the ground water. Some will bind to the soil.
She notes that it’s “a very complicated system that we know very little about.”
Right. So the only logical choice is to go all-in with this plan.
One thing IS certain for the guinea pigs who will ski Snowbowl this season… it’s NOT for the squeamish.
Sources:
“Ariz. Ski Resort Will Make Snow From…Sewage” Evann Gastaldo, Newser, 9/27/12, newser.com
