Littering on the slopes is reeeeaaallly bad for the environment, as anything that does get dropped in the snow will find its way into the surrounding rivers, polluting the water and earth when the snow melts.

Here are some frightening statistics:

+ A plastic bottle takes 100-1000 years to decompose

+ A cigarette butt can take 2-15 years to decompose

+ Orange peel takes up to 2 years to decompose

Pretty scary, huh? Even things like banana peels and apple cores take a long time to degrade and, because they’re not part of the natural habitat, so could be poisonous to the indigenous wildlife. So, if you’re going to take up a picnic, make sure you either hold on to the rubbish and take it down the mountain with you, or find a bin on the slopes (there’s usually one next to every lift), although it’s more difficult to transport rubbish off the mountain so we’d recommend taking it back to town.

If you smoke, it’s a good idea to invest in a pocket ashtray; some resorts sell these or give them out for free at the ticket office so there’s no  excuse to drop your used cigarettes off the chairlift!