Why Columbus? He wasn't the first European to see America. As far as we know (ignoring unverified stories about St. Brendan and the like) the first European to see any of North America was a Norseman in 986--Bjarni Herjolfsson. He has the added merit of never having actually landed, so he didn't cause any harm to indigenous peoples, plants, or animals.
Of course, if Greenland is counted as part of North America (as it is geographically) then the Norse who colonized Greenland are the first Europeans in America.