New England Ski Resorts

With the approach of winter, many skiers are preparing for their annual trip to their favorite ski resorts. The 2007-2008 ski season, however, could prove a challenge for resort owners, particularly in New England.

A serious problem affecting the ski industry in New England and the rest of the world, is the effect of global warming. Colder, Snow shorter winters mean less natural and less potentially months of operation of ski season.

Because New England is "downwind" from the rest of the United States, the weather in the region often consists of a full range of weather the rest of the country. New England are accustomed to having to go around droughts, floods, extreme temperatures, blizzards, ice storms, nor'easters, tornadoes and hurricanes. Harsh winters are nothing new, milder winters, on the other hand, are quite difficult to these states run by the ski industry.

This ski season, those wishing to escape the cycle and unrest in the suburbs for a ski trip weekend can quickly find their choices limited use in the Eastern parts of the United States, according to forecasts.

Due to persistent drought of 18 months which hit most countries, a particular region is the United States, some experts fear there will not be enough snow to get their usual batch of seasonal customers. Resort owners are trying to remain hopeful that the fall season will bring the usual rainfall tropics. A station owner was quoted as saying "snow guns should be considered ..."

In addition to natural challenges, the ski industry in New England is facing obstacles such as seasonal work. The Senate is currently sitting on a bill that could hamper the ability of station owners to hire foreign seasonal employees return.

According to recent statistics of employment, over 122,000 foreign seasonal workers were employed in the H-2B program. About 51,000 of these workers were back.

A recent change in federal law could make it more difficult for resorts to hire thousands of foreign seasonal employees. There are ski resorts eighteen depend strongly on the H-2B program for seasonal employment in Vermont. The current law limits the number of visas issued per year to 66,000. With more than 50,000 workers who currently hold H-2B visas to return to work, it puts pressure on industries that depend on their foreign workers for seasonal work.

The federal government original Save Our Small and Seasonal Business Act of 2005, workers allowed to return without counting on the ceiling, if they had previous H-2B visa. In 2006, more than 70,000 H-2B visas were issued in addition to more than 50,000 employees who returned without being counted against the cap of 66,000.

However, as the ski resorts and seasonal workers are trying to prepare for the ski season, they are also waiting for a bill is passed - or not.

Many tourists are accustomed to seasonal escape in the states of New England skiing. Although the 2007-2008 season ski seasons are faced with challenges such as drought, global warming and a possible shortage of workers, resort owners remain positive. They are anxiously awaiting the usual swarm of tourists and skiers.