How green is your ski equipment?
By Rachel Harris, Ski
How sustainable is that sweet pair of skis you’re about to buy? You may soon be able to find out how green all your favorite products are through a new tool called the Eco Index. Designed in collaboration with over one hundred retailers, brands, and suppliers, along with the Outdoor Industry Association, the European Outdoor Group, and Zero Waste Alliance, the Eco Index is an environmental assessment tool designed to advance sustainable practices within the outdoor industry.
The Eco Index is based on a framework created to guide product development. Developers assess where their materials came from and how they were processed along with packaging, product manufacturing and assembly, transport and distribution, use and service, and finally end of life. After assessment, the Eco Index scores a product on a 119-point scale. “There is a lot of green-washing going on right now because everyone has their own standards,” said Beth Jensen, Corporate Responsibility Manager at OIA. “This will hopefully provide a way to measure products against a standard so that companies can make more informed product lifecycle decisions.”
