The legendary 1974 World Ski Championships course on St. Moritz’s Corviglia mountain is being restored to its natural state. What was once the scene of extraordinary athletic feats during the 1974 World Ski Championships in St. Moritz is now returning to its original alpine landscape. As part of the restoration, grasses, flowers, and a variety of alpine habitats are returning to Corviglia. The reclamation of the former ski slopes is creating new habitat for biodiversity, linking the history of skiing with the protection of this unique mountain environment. In this way, a place steeped in memories is becoming a model for alpine restoration.
The legendary 1974 World Ski Championships course on St. Moritz’s Corviglia mountain is being restored to its natural state. What was once the scene of extraordinary athletic feats during the 1974 World Ski Championships in St. Moritz is now returning to its original alpine landscape. As part of the restoration, grasses, flowers, and a variety of alpine habitats are returning to Corviglia. The reclamation of the former ski slopes is creating new habitat for biodiversity, linking the history of skiing with the protection of this unique mountain environment. In this way, a place steeped in memories is becoming a model for alpine restoration.
Alpine World Ski ChampionshipsWM 1974
For the 1974 Alpine World Ski Championships in St. Moritz, the slopes were adapted to meet the requirements of international racing at great expense. Rocks, ditches, and bumps were smoothed out to create fluid transitions. The slope gradient was also altered in some places to make dangerous sections safer or to make the course more exciting. Finally, reinforcements and safety measures ensured that the course remained stable and weather-resistant. Thus, as early as the 1970s, competition slopes were created that, with the help of machinery and technical precision, set the standard for alpine skiing at the highest level.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE NAIR PITSCHEN NATURAL RESERVOIRALTERNATIVE MEASURES
The restoration of the former 1974 World Championship ski run is the key ecological mitigation measure for the construction of the Nair Pitschen natural reservoir. Since approximately 50,000 m² of vegetated area has been permanently converted into water by the lake, the ecological restoration of the ski slope areas will provide an equivalent offset. The goal is to restore near-natural, species-rich alpine meadows through targeted soil reclamation and the introduction of vegetation suited to the site. This creates valuable habitats for flora and fauna that contribute to the promotion of biodiversity and, in the long term, fulfill a stable ecological function. The measure thus not only serves to integrate the project into the landscape but also meets the requirements for proper ecological compensation in the context of nature and landscape conservation. The combination of this modern infrastructure project and targeted ecological restoration demonstrates how the use and enhancement of alpine landscapes can be reconciled.
Restorationalpine soils
The goal of the restoration of the historic slope is to restore the alpine landscape to its natural diversity. Through targeted soil reclamation, original alpine meadows are being restored. These provide valuable habitat for flora and fauna. In the process, plants are carefully collected from the immediate vicinity and transplanted to the site. This ensures that the vegetation adapts as well as possible to the site and blends harmoniously into the existing landscape. This ecological restoration promotes biodiversity, stabilizes natural cycles in the long term, and strengthens the ecosystem’s resilience.
This project is a striking example of how alpine landscapes can be used responsibly.
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