Luck has not smiled lately on the Catalan ski resort of Baqueira Beret. On the one hand, this Tuesday he reported that he will not be able to start the season due to the long weekend. de la Purísima due to the high temperatures, after already having to postpone its opening scheduled for last weekend. On the other hand, the CUP has reported this Tuesday to the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia the ski resort for the installation of 77 snow cannons supposedly without authorization.
As explained by the parliamentarian Dani Cornellà, they believe that the company that manages it has committed an environmental and urban crime because it placed the cannons before requesting the corresponding permit at the Alt Àneu Town Hall. Once requested, the CUP presented allegations, but anti-capitalists criticize that the council has not responded to them. For this reason, they take the case to Anti-Fraud, with photographs that would demonstrate that the cannons were raised before any permit was processed.
The complaint details that on November 8, 2023, the announcement was published on the notice board of the Alt Àneu City Council by which the Baqueira-Beret company’s request to build was submitted to public information an artificial snow production network in the La Bonaigua area. The CUP document highlights that the project was already partially built before it was approved and attaches images from the Cartographic and Geological Institute of Catalonia (ICGC) and the Google Street View service to demonstrate it.
Cornellà believes that the intention of these works is to connect the station with the Pallars Sobirà and open “a new episode of urban speculation in the area, attract tourism and be able to justify urban modifications and new constructions of second homes in the area.” Together with CUP spokesperson Susana Moreno, he has warned that “60% of the houses in the Pyrenees are second homes open an average of 14 days a year”, which contributes to the housing crisis in the mountains, and that Workers in the area cannot find an apartment and sometimes have to live “in vans.”
He has also warned that the cannons have been made in “an area greatly affected by climate change” where it no longer snows like before and that in this context “These works should not be allowed to be done.” “The Pyrenees needs economic diversification, taking all the eggs out of the tourist basket and starting to look for other sectors such as agriculture or industry,” he added.
Delayed start of season
Regarding the start of the season at the ski resort, Baqueira Beret has reported that, after ruling it out over the bridge, it is planned for when this season passes, as the forecasts point to a drop in temperatures and the entry of a storm. For now, during the long weekend, the public services and some commercial and restaurant facilities.
The station plans to open the new Baqueira 1500 offices for those clients who want to make the initial arrangements for the season in person. In this same nucleus they will also open commercial facilities and ski storage. In addition, Baqueira Beret will open some restaurant establishments starting this Thursday night.
Given the impossibility of skiing during the bridge, the company highlights in a statement the wide cultural, recreational and family offer of the Vall d’Aran and the Valls de Àneu, where various events are organized to switch on Christmas lights, nativity scenes, craft and second-hand markets, concerts or a children’s story cycle in Aranese.
Looking ahead to the week after the bridge and as long as the weather forecasts are met, Baqueira Beret assures that the station’s technical services will work to launch the facilities and open the slopes as soon as possible.