The North American Snow Belt region, in the Great Lakes region, lives up to its name as a region of heavy snowfall. This region gets the heaviest snowfall totals outside of the Rocky Mountains. The Great Lakes themselves contribute to this phenomenon.

Videos below show how lake effect snow works.

And here is a map of the snow belt. Yes, the measurements are in cm.

With this in mind, there is a blog article by Future Economics called “Fasten Your Snowbelts”. It is about the technological factor with the snow belt. Give it a read: https://future-economics.com/2016/05/18/fasten-your-snowbelts-technology-and-the-great-lakes/

As mentioned in the article, Buffalo, New York is the largest metropolitan area in the snow belt region. There is one thing to consider. It is not only about technology. It is about research and development. Consider the geography of research and development. Silicon Valley sprouting high tech companies in Bay Area of California. The Snow Belt could grow into a major research and development center for snow removal technology. There is a potential for Buffalo to become a major hub for R&D. It wouldn’t only be the snow removal technology that could boost population. It would be the jobs provided and the low cost of living that could boost Buffalo’s population. SUNY at Buffalo and Buffalo State College would be a good place to start in terms of R&D. A research park could be formed. North Carolina has Research Triangle Park, Daedeok Innopolis in South Korea. A research district could develop in Buffalo based on that.