Guilt-free skiing (Image: Ulli Seer/Getty)

THE last thing on your mind as you zoom down the piste this winter will probably be, “Oh no, I’m damaging a fragile alpine environment!” But it’s just one of the things developers will be able to consider when deciding where to site future resorts -thanks to some smart location analysis software that can predict the problems likely to befall winter sports resorts before they are built.

Mountain communities struggling to cope with the loss of industries such as copper mining can see winter sports as a potential lifeline, says Jordan Silberman, a geographer at …