Heavy Snow Hits New Zealand; Chilean Ski Resort Remains Open Despite Volcanic Activity; Too Many Polar Bears In Greenland; + British Farmers Paid To NOT Produce Food

There are so many polar bears in Greenland that locals are having to shoot them for their safety.

Heavy Snow Hits New Zealand

Crowds descended upon Canterbury's ski fields for a "perfect snow day" on Friday, with Mt Hutt drawing over 3,000 skiers and snowboarders alone. "Today is the day we’ve been waiting for!" wrote Porters Alpine Resort on its website.

Fresh snowfall this week has revitalized South Island ski fields, and as the weather cleared, skiers hit the slopes in their droves.

Heavy blowing snow had caused significant disruptions across the region, with areas such as Fairlie, Hanmer Springs, and parts of Canterbury, all blanketed white, before the flakes shifted towards Marlborough.

Owing to the conditions, multiple severe weather warnings were issued, including for North Canterbury which was put under an orange warning for heavy snow.

As of Friday, all facilities at Mt Hutt Ski Area, Porters Alpine Resort, and Mt Dobson were operational, with access roads cleared.

Mt Hutt cleared access roads.

Mt Hutt general manager James Urquhart had anticipated a large turnout, but Friday’s crowd "exceeded our expectations."

"This is our busiest day of the season. It seems like everyone in Canterbury took the day off," he added "There’s a lot of excitement on the slopes today."

New Zealand Ski chief executive Paul Anderson remarked that Thursday was also an “amazing day” with decent snow bases reported across the South Island after the most-recent 24-hour storm, including the 83 cm (32.7 inches) at Mt Hutt.

"Epic snowstorm hits Mt Hutt," reports unofficialnetworks.com.

Meteorologist Alwyn Bakker explained that a high-pressure system was now over much of the South Island, keeping skies clear and the temperatures low. Mt Dobson is noting -7C (19.4F), while Mt Hutt, slightly cloudy, is seeing -4.6C (23.7F).

"A lot of ski fields received a substantial snowfall from the recent storm," said Bakker. "The low temperatures are helping to preserve the snow, making it a great time for skiing."

Clear skies and biting lows at Mt Hutt.

This reality calls into question the myriad of predictions calling for catastrophic glacial demise in New Zealand.

One prominent forecast claims that a significant number of glaciers on NZ’s South Island will have completely melted by 2030.

“In a decade, we predict that many of our beloved and important glaciers will be gone," said NIWA principal scientist Andrew Lorrey in 2022. "This will have far reaching impacts, such as altering our beautiful landscape, affecting the livelihoods of people who rely on these natural wonders for tourism, and flow on effects from decreased meltwater during periods of drought." (WEF)

Chilean Ski Resort Remains Open Despite Volcanic Activity

The Villarrica Volcano, towering 9,383 feet (2,860 meters) above Centro Ski Pucon in Chile, has shown significant activity. Since late last year, Villarrica has been in an active eruption cycle, with a further uptick noted in July.