Petitioners demand Columbia Sportswear remove PFAS

Right now, the Pure Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the U.S. Public Interest Study Group Schooling Fund (USPIRG Education Fund) shipped 48,000 petition signatures to Columbia Sportswear CEO, calling for the period out of harmful PFAS from the company’s source chain. 

PFAS are a course of extra than 12,000 poisonous chemical substances, identified for their considerable air pollution of the nation’s consuming drinking water resources, accumulation in wildlife and menace to community wellness.  Inspite of their threat, PFAS are used thoroughly in the out of doors attire marketplace – in coatings and membranes –  to make dresses water and stain resistant.

Although many outdoor clothing companies dependent in the United States and Europe – which include Patagonia, L.L. Bean and Jack Wolfskin have either previously removed or dedicated to a time-bound section out of the chemicals, Columbia Sportswear has nevertheless to choose identical motion.

The corporation gained a grade of F in a new scorecard posted by NRDC, U.S. PIRG Education Fund and Fashion FWD for its weak action on PFAS. 

At Columbia Sportswear’s Annual Assembly of Shareholders previous thirty day period, CEO Tim Boyle pointed out that the organization has ‘been focused on reducing our use of PFAS and eventually phasing them out.’  To date, on the other hand, Columbia Sportswear has still to build a day for section out. 

A time-sure determination is important to guarantee company shoppers and the community at substantial that the corporation will act decisively and immediately to guard public wellness in the encounter of the massive entire body of evidence that PFAS poses a sizeable danger to persons and the planet.

Ongoing use of PFAS in the company’s provide chain instantly contravenes Columbia Sportswear’s vision of selling sustainability and cleanse drinking water supplies close to the globe.  It also contravenes the company’s eyesight for sustainability, exacerbates investor possibility, and sites Columbia driving numerous competitors who have built commitments to section out all PFAS use from their merchandise and supply chains.

Moreover, proposed constraints on PFAS use in attire in the United States and in Europe could go away the company at the rear of the swiftly evolving lawful landscape all over the utilizes of these chemical compounds.

To do its aspect in shielding the general public from the hazards of PFAS and defend its own status and buyers, Columbia Sportswear really should right away announce a timeline for period out of these harmful chemicals.