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Does anyone know good sources that talk about this issue? Perhaps we can divide this into 3 categories:

  1. Is snow generally muktza since it has no practical use (as opposed to rainwater which has uses)? Shmiras Shabbos Kehilchasa equates it to rainwater, but I personally see a distinction.

  2. Does it matter if it fell before shabbos or on shabbos?

  3. If falling on shabbos is more of an issue, does it matter if it fell into snow that was previously on the groung from before shabbos (Do we say Kamma Kamma Batel)?

From the lack of its discussion, it seems like it may not be a big issue.

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3 Answers

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http://hirhurim.blogspot.com/2008/12/shoveling-snow-on-shabbos.html

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Good sources!!! – YDK Dec 26 '10 at 3:45
Would you mind writing a two-sentence summary of that link? – Shmuel L Dec 18 '11 at 6:09
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Why does it have no use? You can fill a Mikva with it and it would be Kosher. I know of a Mikva built in Arizona that they trucked in snow to full it up per the Psak of HaRav Moshe Feinstein Zatzal.

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The fact that they trucked it in shows that the snow had no use. If they paskened like the mechaber that snow was Kosher for tevila, manually filling the Mikvah with it would be havaya al yedei adam (unless they ran it 3 tefachim over a ground platform before hitting the mikva). – YDK Dec 26 '10 at 3:00
I do not know exactly how it was done. However it was done in a way that rendered the Mikva Kosher per the Psak of HaRav Moshe Zatzal. I was answering the question and trying to show that snow can have a use. – Gershon Gold Dec 26 '10 at 3:23
Gershon, the point is does it have a use on Shabbos. You would not be allowed to set up a mikvah on Shabbos. – Yahu Dec 26 '10 at 3:58
you can still use it as a mikva on shabbos – Gershon Gold Dec 26 '10 at 3:59
...or eat it. – msh210♦ Dec 26 '10 at 8:21

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