While the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympics celebrate the glories of Italian mountain sport, Legambiente (Italy’s main environmental association) publishes its annual NeveDiversa report with a starkly different message: across Italy, hundreds of kilometres of abandoned lift infrastructure blight Alpine landscapes and represent an unresolved environmental liability.
The NeveDiversa Report: Key Findings
The 2026 edition of the NeveDiversa (Different Snow) report documents:
- 249 abandoned ski areas across Italy, up from 227 in the previous report
- Approximately 1,400 km of abandoned piste on Italian mountain slopes
- Over 350 lift structures left to rust in situ after resort closures
- Only 12 complete decommissioning operations carried out in the last decade
The report identifies a pattern: small and medium-sized resorts, particularly at lower altitudes, have closed as snowfall becomes less reliable due to climate change, but the decommissioning of lift infrastructure has not followed.
The Scale of Abandoned Infrastructure
Italy has one of the highest concentrations of historical ski lift installations in the world, dating from the post-war expansion of mountain tourism. Many of these installations operated for decades before becoming economically unviable.
The abandoned resorts are distributed across all Alpine and Apennine regions:
| Region | Abandoned ski areas | % of national total |
|---|---|---|
| Apennines (various) | 89 | 36% |
| Piedmont | 38 | 15% |
| Lombardy | 31 | 12% |
| Trentino-Alto Adige | 22 | 9% |
| Veneto | 19 | 8% |
| Aosta Valley | 14 | 6% |
| Other regions | 36 | 14% |
The Apennine concentration is particularly significant: lower-altitude resorts across Calabria, Basilicata, Campania and the northern Apennines were the first to become unviable as Mediterranean climate warming reduced reliable snow seasons.
Environmental Impact
Legambiente identifies several environmental concerns:
Visual and Landscape Impact
Steel tower structures, abandoned cables and derelict lift stations are visible for kilometres in the pristine Alpine and Apennine landscapes. The contrast between these eyesores and the protected natural areas they often stand in is stark.
Physical Infrastructure Risk
Abandoned towers and cables pose direct physical risks: corrosion weakens structural integrity, cables can fail and fall, and derelict buildings present hazards to hikers and wildlife.
Soil Disruption
The slope preparation work done for ski piste maintenance (bulldozing, grading) leaves altered terrain that reverts slowly to natural vegetation. Without ongoing management, these bare slopes are prone to erosion.
The Decommissioning Problem: Why It Does Not Happen
Despite clear environmental need, ski lift decommissioning is rare. Legambiente identifies several reasons:
- Cost: removing a ski lift installation costs between 500,000 and 2,000,000 euros depending on size and location. This cost falls on municipalities that are often financially stretched.
- Ownership complexity: many installations passed through multiple owners before closure; legal responsibility for decommissioning is contested.
- Hope of revival: local communities often resist decommissioning, hoping that snow conditions will improve or new investors will arrive.
- Regulatory gaps: national legislation on mandatory decommissioning timelines is unclear.
Case Studies: Success and Failure
Successful Decommissioning: Reggello, Tuscany
The Abetone-adjacent resort of Reggello successfully removed its entire ski infrastructure over five years, converting the former ski area into a network of mountain bike and hiking trails. The project required 800,000 euros in EU rural development funding and created a sustainable alternative use for the mountain terrain.
Ongoing Failure: Multiple Apennine Cases
Across the southern Apennines, dozens of small resorts that closed in the 1990s and 2000s retain their rusting infrastructure. In some cases, lift towers stand within protected national park boundaries, creating direct conflicts with conservation objectives.
Legambiente Recommendations
The 2026 report calls for:
- A national register of abandoned ski installations with mandatory declaration
- Government funding for decommissioning, modelled on industrial site remediation programmes
- Time limits: mandatory decommissioning within 10 years of commercial closure
- Conversion planning: systematic assessment of former ski areas for alternative uses (hiking, mountain biking, rewilding)
The Olympic Contrast
The timing of the NeveDiversa report alongside the Olympics is deliberate. Legambiente argues that the multi-billion euro investment in Olympic ski facilities must be balanced against the unresolved legacy of abandoned infrastructure from the previous century of ski development.
The mountain, as NeveDiversa’s title suggests, can be different: more sustainable, more ecologically responsible and more honest about the long-term costs of ski tourism.