Make global tournaments green, rugby player says

Research shows pro events emit as much greenhouse gas as Poland or Spain

International sports events need to redouble sustainability efforts to reduce the “huge negative environmental impact” they generate, according to Great Britain rugby sevens player Jamie Farndale.

Speaking at the Hong Kong Sport & Sustainability Summit ahead of last weekend’s Cathay/ HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, Farndale said that, according to his research, professional sport emits 350 million tonnes of greenhouse gas – the same amount released by countries such as Poland or Spain.

Of the 40,000 people each day at the three-day tournament in Hong Kong, 42 per cent came from overseas. Farndale said 90 per cent of emissions were generated by people travelling to such events.

“The way that things are being approached at the moment, it’s about making 5 per cent reductions, 10 per cent reductions [in one’s carbon footprint],” said Farndale, who is a sustainability ambassador for Scottish Rugby and is studying for a master’s degree in the subject at Cambridge University.

“My point isn’t that that is not the right approach; if anything, we need to double down on that.”

Older venues such as Hong Kong Stadium do not use renewable energy, and tonnes of food, packaging and single-use plastics are thrown away after events.

“The Super Bowl had about 60 tonnes of waste, and that is just one event,” Farndale said.

This year’s Hong Kong Sevens used plastic cups that were cleaned, sanitised and reused. Some merchandise, including T-shirts, was made using recycled plastics.

Organisers also worked with Feeding Hong Kong to ensure that unsold food and drinks were distributed to those in poverty.

Hong Kong rugby boss Robbie McRobbie said: “You can go around the tournament today and you can find 101 things that we’re still not doing as well as we would like to, in regard to sustainability – but this is a journey we’re all on.”

McRobbie said one major issue holding back mega events from being more environmentally friendly was that it was hard to get everyone involved singing from the same hymn sheet.

“Vendors, for example, have multi-year contracts in stadiums and there are not a lot of events and there are fewer events that make money,” he said. “So, for them, they have to maximise the money they make and keep costs down.

“And stadiums also have restrictions; we cannot use reusable cups in the South Stand because there is a risk people will throw them.”

McRobbie also highlighted how modern stadiums use greywater, LED lights and renewable energy sources.

Next year, the Hong Kong Sevens will take place in the newly built Kai Tak Sports Park, which will have some renewable energy sources in the main stadium.