Can the Snowboard Industry Go Green?

While snowboarding may not be the most eco-friendly sport out there – especially the lift-served, made-snow variety – there are some snowboard companies going all out to make a difference. Companies are raising awareness of the threat that climate change is posing to our winter wonderlands, helping riders find the resorts that are putting some green towards being green, and working to make their products as sustainable as possible.  After all, it’s in their interest to keep the snow falling!

In 2007, professional snowboarder Jeremy Jones, formed Protect our Winters (POW); an organization aimed at bringing the winter sports community together to focus on initiatives that will have a direct impact on the climate change that has become such a threat to our mountains and glaciers. In other words, to prevent the official rise of grassboarding as a sport. Our options are becoming more limited, as smaller resorts that rely on only natural snow are being forced to close. Beyond the future of the sport, in many places snow pack is a natural storage system for water used to irrigate agricultural lands, come snow melt in spring. As glaciers recede, and snow accumulations lessen, many people who depend on them for food and water are threatened.

Although inherently not the greenest sport, snowboarders can patronize resorts that are putting efforts into running more sustainably. The Ski Area Citizens’ Coalition has put together an awesome website that rates U.S. western ski areas on an environmental scorecard. The scorecard rates ski areas in four categories: habitat protection, protecting watersheds, addressing global climate change, and environmental practices and policies. So before you hit the slopes, see how your preferred ski area stacks up.

Best of all, snowboard manufacturing companies are beginning to catch on. These are just a few of the companies that have proven that high-performance equipment can be manufactured more sustainably without compromising function or design.

Bataleon is a boutique brand that has stepped up with their Project Green board. Although newer to the green movement, it is important to have more and more companies getting involved and becoming aware of their effect on the environment, no matter their size. The Project Green board has a FSC certified wood core, recycled base, recycled sidewalls, a non oil-based top sheet, and a soy wax finish.  All of the Bataleon boards are manufactured in Austria, in a factory with some high environmental standards of its own. Oh yeah, and it is actually green.

If you’re going for super-green, hike your way up the hill and ditch that power-sucking chairlift! Atomic’s Poacher Renu split snowboard was recently awarded this years coveted ISPO Eco Responsibility Award. This eco-friendly snowboard has a core made from poplar and ash wood, jute layering instead of fiberglass, and a water based top coat. Atomic also manufactures sustainable skis, ski boots, and poles. Atomic works as a company to reduce the footprint of their factories. Their Altenmarkt plant uses a wood chip heating system, which cuts their annual oil fuel consumption by 950,000 liters and their CO2 emissions by 4 million Kilograms per year! This new split board isn’t quite out yet, but you can check out some of their other decks at Evo Gear.

Arbor has been working to be more environmentally friendly for over 15 years. Their boards are made of sustainable woods like koa, poplar, and bamboo. Each year the company donates 5% of its profits to an organization such as: The Nature Conservatory, The Rain Forest Action Network, and American Forests. In addition, they are also working with True Offsets to help restore forest lands and offset more carbon emissions then they are actually responsible for, making Arbor a “less-than-zero carbon emitter”. All of their advertising is printed with soy based inks which make them easier to recycle. And they also buy wind credits to help offset the electricity used at their headquarters in Venice, CA.

Mervin Manufacturing, the parent company of Lib Tech’s Banana Magic board uses 100% basalt fiber, instead of fiber glass. They also use a new bio-plastic top sheet that is made from Castor beans, which is not only eco-friendly, but also one of the lightest and strongest in the industry. They use recycled bases, and soy-based elastomer sidewalls. They also build their boards domestically and pride themselves on having one of the most environmentally friendly factories in the industry. Mervin uses only water-based solvents, and wood dust from production is recycled while scrap wood is sold as kindling. Bio-diesel is used to heat the factory, and they even have a bio-diesel co-op on the property, that employees and local farmers can use to fill their cars and trucks. It takes time to build up this kind of system, and Mervin has put the time in, researching and applying natural materials and processes to their plan since the 1980s.