Unfortunately, many of them end up in bulky waste, leaving valuable resources unused. A promising pilot project, launched on 30 January 2024, aims to tackle this challenge and find a sustainable way to recycle ski items.
The art of the circular economy
The vast majority of skis, ski boots, poles and helmets are made from plastic. Winter sports equipment manufacturers are aware of the ecological footprint and have increased their interest in efficient recycling methods over the last two years. An important step in this direction has been taken through collaboration with the plastics cluster of the ecoplus business agency in Lower Austria, an experienced player in the circular economy.
The new research project, which is supported by well-known manufacturers such as Head, Atomic, Fischer, Blizzard-Tecnica and Leki, aims to develop economically and ecologically sensible recycling models for skis, bindings, helmets, boots and poles. Research partners are the renowned Montanuniversität Leoben in Styria and the Transfer Centre for Plastics Technology in Wels, Upper Austria.
New life for old skis
The reprocessing of sports equipment is carried out in various phases. From the development of an efficient collection system to the processing options for used winter sports equipment and the utilisation of raw materials - the project covers a broad spectrum of sustainable measures. The pilot regions for the collection system have already been defined in Salzburg's Pinzgau and Pongau regions, with further regions being considered in the future.
The project will run for three years and concrete results are expected in the third year. The long-term goal is to return a significant proportion of valuable materials from ski articles to the cycle and thus make an important contribution to sustainable development in the winter sports sector.
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Source: red, noe.ORF.at/Agencies