Environmental Impacts of Big Sports Events

This article discusses the environmental impacts of big sports events and ways to reduce their negative effects. It also explores the sustainability efforts of the NFL.

Running Head: Sustainability
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Contents
Environmental impacts of big sports events..........................................................................................3
Reaction to the article.......................................................................................................................3
Two Impacts of large sporting events................................................................................................4
NFL (National Football League) sustainability program.....................................................................5
Ways by which NFL is trying to be sustainable..............................................................................5
Effectiveness of NFL’s sustainability efforts...................................................................................5
Things that can improve their sustainability efforts......................................................................5
References:........................................................................................................................................7
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Environmental impacts of big sports events:
1) Reaction to the article-
This article in Forbes by Warren, 2017 talks about the impacts of big sports events on the
environment and it further discusses the steps that can reduce the negative side effects of
these events.
I agree with the idea represented by this article as the number of these mega events is
increasing a lot these days and even the scale of these events is rising, so the impact of
these events on environment is an important aspect to consider. I feel that article
accurately captures the lure of hosting mega sporting events for the local governments as
these events help host city’s economy. So, they do not give much attention to the negative
effects of these events on the environment via increased consumption of the non-
renewable energy sources and increased pollution. A study cited in this article conducted
by Cardiff University found that “The average attendee generates a footprint seven times
greater than someone going about normal, everyday activity”. I also found interesting that
how this article through the example of Brazil talks about politicians relaxing local rules
for the urban development and pushing through emergency bills so as to satisfy the
requirements for these events.
I strongly feel that there should be proper legal frameworks for the sustainable
development as there are few such frameworks present currently. “Agenda 21” is one
such framework mentioned in the article. This framework encourages the members of
United Nations to have guidelines to address the social and environmental impacts of
such events. I think that definitely the use of “Social Licences” can help in reducing the
negative impact of these events on the environment and the society, as this will bring all
the stakeholders on the same page to effectively analyse these impacts. At end I feel that
this article discusses an important topic that is the huge impact of big sports events on the
environment. This part of the story is often neglected in the name of advancement and
development but at this point of time it is crucial to have proper analysis of
Environmental impacts of these events so as to have sustainable development.
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2) Two Impacts of large sporting events (Warren, 11 December 2017)-
First, major impact is through the infrastructure development due to the consumption of
water and energy resources, construction waste and pollution. The reason is that many
times the local government ignores the rules related to the planning and development as
they get lured by the economic benefits.
Second impact is via the increased travel by the viewers of these events. The consumption
of food and energy resources by the tourists negatively effects the environment through
heaps of trash and food waste, water consumption for toilets and overall energy
consumption.
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3) NFL (National Football League) sustainability program-
NFL has been committed to the sustainability program to reduce the impact of its massive
sports events like Super Bowl on environment.
Ways by which NFL is trying to be sustainable:
According to Inc.com, NFL is working with its local partners toward recovery of events
materials and prepared food, recycling of possible materials and reducing overall carbon
footprints by extensive use of green energy.
It has become the member of the Green Sports Alliance to formally support its
commitment to sustainability (Hermes, 2018).
Many of its stadiums are moving in the direction of sustainability in sports. As per
Georgetown University’s research “MetLife Stadium reduced its carbon footprint by over
247,379.4 metric tons of Carbon Dioxide equivalent. Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara,
California has back-reduced water consumption by over 50% by changing their turfgrass
choice.”
Effectiveness of NFL’s sustainability efforts:
According to Environmental Leader (2018), NFL was successful in its drive aiming zero
waste on game day at its stadium in Minnesota, US. It was able to divert more than 80%
of stadium’s trash to recycling and composting, a considerable improvement over 2016.
NFL’s sustainability efforts were appreciated in a report by U.S. Department of Energy as
it recognized the use of modern technology by its stadiums to reduce energy and water
consumption.
These efforts are having a positive impact as NFL’s events are among the largest sports
events in U.S. and their venues are huge. So, these events can have substantial impact on
the environment as they require a lot of energy and they produce massive amount of trash.
But the continuous move towards the use of green energy has helped contain these
negative effects.
Things that can improve their sustainability efforts:
Some of NFL’s stadiums are LEED certified but considering the scale of its events NFL
should try to make all its stadiums LEED certified so as to have a formal commitment
towards sustainability.
Its sports events are growing in number and scale with time and as a result the ways in
which it impacts environment is increasing. So, it is necessary for NFL to bring together
all the stakeholders including teams, local governments and general public to address
these issues. The use of “Social Licences” can increase local community engagement
with regards to social and environmental issues. It will provide a holistic view and timely
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analysis of costs and benefits of these events. Also, the environmental issues need to
become an integral part of NFL’s administration and management.
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References:
Danigelis. A. (2018). Super Bowl Project to Score Zero Waste on Gameday – Here’s How.
Environmental Leader. Retrieved from:
https://www.environmentalleader.com/2018/01/super-bowl-zero-waste/
Accessed: 23 March 2019
Hermes. J. (2018). 6 Ways Pro Sports Brands are Pushing Sustainability Initiatives and Why it
Matters. Environmental Leader. Retrieved from:
https://www.environmentalleader.com/2018/06/177081/
Accessed: 23 March 2019
Inc. (23 April 2018). 6 Ways Pro Sports Brands are Pushing Sustainability Initiatives and why it
matters. Retrieved from:
https://www.inc.com/larry-alton/6-ways-pro-sports-brands-are-pushing-sustainability-
initiatives-and-why-it-matters.html
Accessed: 23 March 2019
Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy. (2017). 5 NFL Football Stadiums Score Big on
Efficiency. Retrieved from:
https://www.energy.gov/eere/articles/5-nfl-football-stadiums-score-big-efficiency
Accessed: 23 March 2019
Warren. G. S. (11 December 2017). Big Sports Events Have Big Environmental Footprints. Could
Social Licenses To Operate Help? Retrieved from:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/uhenergy/2017/12/11/big-sports-events-have-big-
environmental-footprints-could-social-licenses-to-operate-help/#488d3ebe50cf
Accessed: 23 March 2019
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