MANUAL SPORT ENVIRONMENT

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Ski trails (alpine skiing, ski jumping, biathlon, etc.)
• limit the construction of new trails
• choose w ith care sites for new trails
• choose snow -making mac hines using low amounts of w ater
• eliminate the use of snow -hardening chemicals
Water sports (sailing, w indsurfing, row ing, etc.)
• avoid doc king location in sensitiv e areas (espec ially w etland areas, natural banks
and s hores, etc.)
• build doc king w ith as little hard materials as possible
• avoid anti-fouling products (es pecially those containing arsenic , merc ury or
organotins)
• forbid access to w ater courses, lakes or w ater areas during periods w hich are
critical for the fauna (e.g. reproduction time)
Sp orts equipm ent
Due to the great variety of sports and to the development of new technologies in
sports equipment, the market of sports articles is incredibly v aried w hile at the same
time highly specializ ed. This evolution has led to the use of new substanc es in the
manufacturing processes.
Some of those s ubstanc es are potentially tox ic and can be damaging during the
manufacturing, use or dis posal of the equipment. A nother point to keep in mind is the
shorter life span of some equipment, w hich becomes obsolete before being out of
order, and generates w aste as a result.
The object ives ar e to:
• reduce pollution due to sports equipment
• reuse and recyc le artic les w here poss ible
• promote environmentally sound equipment and local manufacturing knowledge
It is important to w ork closely w ith spons ors and s uppliers to ens ure that their
products and s ervices are environmentally friendly. This is achiev ed by establis hing a
standard contracting process. Spons ors and suppliers should be encouraged to
folow some env ironmental requirements and comply w ith them. They have to
assume their ow n role in the ques t for environment-friendly sport. Some
environmental requirements for the sports industry could be to provide information on
their production process es, their w aste management systems, the us e of reduced
pac kaging, the reusability and non-tox icity of their products , etc.
It is als o important to enc ourage c ompanies manufacturing sports equipment to
obtain ISO 9,000 and 14,000 certific ates for Quality Assurance and Env ironmental
Management.
ISO, the International Organization for Standardization, is a nongovernmental
organiz ation setting international standards for a w ide range of products and
proc ess es. The recent publication of the first tw o International Standards in the ISO
14,000 series of environmental management standards w ill ass ist bus iness and