The outdoor Snowbowl concert series won't be a part of Ottawa's Winterlude festival this year, organizers say.

The National Capital Commission, which organizes the festival, said environmental concerns factored into the decision to cancel the concerts.

"The Snowbowl was actually a heated stage. Due to instruments and equipment, the stage had to be heated and kept warm," said Denise Leblanc, an NCC spokeswoman.

"The National Capital Commission is moving towards a carbon-neutral Winterlude in 2012, so as part of our steps towards that, a decision was made to cancel the Snowbowl."

Leblanc said a survey of people who attended the festival also revealed that most attendees didn't consider the Snowbowl to be an important Winterlude feature.

The NCC said the $400,000 that it spent every year on the outdoor concerts will be redistributed to other Winterlude events.

The Snowbowl concert series has been a Winterlude fixture since 2005, and has featured a number of popular musicians, including the Rheostatics, Jully Black, K'naan and Roch Voisine.

Winterlude runs Feb. 5-21 and features a playground made of snow, ice sculptures and skating on the Rideau Canal, a 7.8-kilometre skating path.