Monday, January 29, 2007

The Logistics of Snow

Snow is definitely pretty, it makes everywhere look picturesque...picture postcard nice. Even this dump called Novy Urengoy looks good in snow. But the other day I realized that snow in the amounts we get here must be a pain in the neck to get rid of. For instance outside my office the snow is piled half way up the window, cutting out what little light we get at this time of year. Our carpark is only small but we already have an immense pile from clearing it off after every snowfall. The snow has to be loaded onto trucks and taken for disposal, or rather to make a bigger pile somewhere else. Remember snow that falls from October on will not melt until May!!
Snow from all over the town has to be got rid of somewhere; and I finally found out where. On the outskirts of town I noticed fleets of trucks loaded with snow going down an obscure track...at the end of the track is a huge pile of snow, a veritable man made mountain!!
I wonder if it all melts before the new winter snows fall, or has this become a permanent geographical feature?