By Susannah Wood

The recent ouster of three athletes at the Olympics for using ski/snowboard waxes containing PFAS (forever chemicals) should be a wakeup call to all of us who enjoy winter fun here in the Northwest Corner. If you have old cross-country ski wax hanging around, it may well contain these dangerous substances because the ski and snowboard industry embraced the extra glide they provided and proudly advertised products containing them as having “fluor.” This is not stuff we want in our woods and water supply. All sorts of health issues are associated with exposure to PFAS chemicals, from cancers to liver and immune system damage and more. They persist in our environment indefinitely. The best tactic is to put any old waxes in a bag for the next toxic collection day and buy some new. Zumwax and SWIX F4 liquid wax purchased in the fall of 2025 or after are both PFAS free. There may be others as well but check labels carefully for “PFAS free.”