In the previous 2 posts, we have observed how various sporting events such as the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics or Major League Baseball (MLB) have produced various forms of environmental pollution in their bid to stimulate economic growth through the sporting industry. In this post, we will be reviewing green initiatives taken by various sports leagues and evaluating their efficacy.

In the MLB, the San Francisco Giants are a baseball team based in San Francisco’s AT&T ballpark. The organisers of the ballpark have concentrated on energy and waste reduction by implementing a recycling and composting programme within the stadium, resulting in the diversion of 3.5 million pounds of ballpark waste in 2009, which is a rate of 75% of total waste (McCullough et al., 2015).  Given this, I believe that such a programme is effective as it does not inhibit the nature of the industry while reducing the amount of waste produced by the games. However, even though 75% of waste is recycled, the absolute amount of waste that goes to the landfill is still large, at a whopping estimated of about 1.17 million pounds. As such, though a step in the right direction, there are still limitations to the recycling and composting programme due to the sheer size of the industry.

In my previous post, I mentioned how the nature of the sports entertainment industry poses some challenges in reducing the amount of carbon emissions produced by the fans. On the flip side, research has found that the positive environmental practices of a professional sports team increases the consumer’s internalisation of their team values, where consumers become more likely to show their support for their team’s environmental initiatives (Blankenbuehler and Kunz, 2014). For example, the Brooklyn Nets launched a “B” Green programme where they provided bicycle racks at the park to encourage fans to cycle to the arena while also encouraging them to practice recycling (Blankenbuehler and Kunz, 2014).

On a larger scale, the National Basketball Association (NBA) has worked together with the National Resource Defence Council (NRDC) to come up with initiatives to green the sports industry. Together, they improved the existing recycling programme in the arena to include plastic bottles and aluminium cans, while also procuring 100% of recycled content bathroom tissue in the arena (NRDC, n.d.). Furthermore, the NRDC provided hybrid cars for staff transportation as well, which reduces the amount of carbon emission produced during travelling.

As such, the complexity of the nature of the sports industry goes both ways, where the integral nature of the fans has become a double-edged sword in reducing environmental pollution. On the one hand, their essentiality in the industry reduces the possibility of a lower physical turnout to reduce carbon emissions by travelling. On the other hand, these fans are more susceptible to the influence of their sports teams and the environmental practices promoted. As such, with proper initiatives and guidance, I do believe that the attachment to these teams can be made use of to create a greener sports entertainment industry.

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