Why sailing isn’t as green as we think

The water sports industry and more specifically, recreational yachting is on the verge of risking its reputation. Both as a sport and the pastime of cruising we talk of it being environmentally friendly, harnessing the power of nature. Comparing sailing to racing cars, off-road motocross and flying, we have been looking rather good. But we can no longer ‘greenwash’ the marine industry. It must step up and take responsibility for what it produces, how it uses materials and markets its products and sport. As consumers, we need to be aware of the lifecycle of the products we use to make informed, responsible decisions about what we buy and how we dispose of old products.

If we do not tackle the problem of our dated, linear approach within the industry,