Some wetsuits fail the green test

ECO-FRIENDLY wetsuits are already the next wave among surfers. Patagonia was the first to jump into the green waters, with a zip-up made of neoprene derived from limestone instead of petroleum. When the suit debuted in April 2006, Patagonia couldn’t meet the high demand.

Within a year, Body Glove and Matuse followed with their own “green” wetsuits. (Both sell on Seahuggers.com, a website that requires no explanation.)

But now, it turns out the whole theory of an eco-wetsuit may not hold water.

“The carbon footprint from mining and heating limestone is comparable to drilling for oil,” says Jason McCaffrey, director of surf for Patagonia. “It may be easier to clean up than an oil spill, but there is no eco-friendly wetsuit.”

The company is experimenting with recycled neoprene and hoping to test a prototype within six months.

“What I like about Patagonia is that they admit that they’re not happy with the limestone and they want to make a greener wetsuit,” says Chris Mauro, editor of Surfer magazine. “They were eco before it became fashionable.”

In other words, before the sea of green.