How the Sports Industry is Fighting the Plastic Pollution

Plastic has revolutionized the way we watch or even play sports. Because it is malleable and lightweight, it can produce sports equipment in one go. It even replaces certain materials to provide athletes with an optimum playing experience. Wherever sports you’re in—be it volleyball, rafting, hockey, soccer, or even paddle boarding—plastic is used.

More than those who are in courts and fields, fans and enthusiasts also contribute to the plastic that the sports industry uses. Since sports events also pose as social events, what audiences use and consume was a part of it too—and sadly, most of these are made of plastic. From the food they purchase, the drinks by the sidelines, as well as souvenirs and memorabilia, these are all packaged in plastic.

From big players to audiences—everyone is involved.

People are now using more and more plastic, and it only accumulates in the environment (especially the single-use plastics!) because it cannot decompose. The world of sports is no exception. However, managing plastic pollution should not be blamed on one entity only.

Everyone has their fair share in producing plastic waste in the sports industry—the big companies, the athletes, the staff behind the courts, the vendors, and even the audiences. But mere awareness is not enough to mitigate the consequences of plastic pollution. Everyone has to act and protect both our present and the future.

Don’t worry! The sports industry is already gearing up with initiatives to go plastic-free. Here is a list of environment-friendly techniques that might inspire you, as a fan, an athlete, or a sports company, to reduce carbon emission and fight plastic pollution!

Alternatives to plastic bottles

If there’s one thing that needs a major eco-revamp in the industry—it's food. And it starts by choosing a sustainable packaging solution.

In 2018, there is a trial of replacing plastic bottles set to the London Marathon, the largest annual marathon for the public in the United Kingdom, which hosts 40,000+ runners.

Instead of purely using water bottles, they supplied around 90,000 cups made of sustainable materials to the entire course, lowering the need for bottles to 760,000. The bottles used in the race were collected and recycled.

Even the data from the cups were assessed and used to improve upcoming marathons in the future. More than that, these cups are to be composted in a facility.

The following year, they reduced more than 215,000 water bottles even more and ensured that all the bottles used were 100% recyclable. They also launched a new trial, where 700 runners are equipped with bottle belts to study how a runner consumes water and open the future for runners carrying their water supply.

Incentivize sustainability!

Switching to paper is one of the most popular advocacies of big industries. More and more restaurants do not provide straws anymore, but if it is unavoidable, they either switch to paper, bamboo, or reusable metal straws. Some are even edible!

One good example of this is the move of Twickenham Stadium. They banned the use of straws in its 82,000 seating venues. Then, they also switched from disposable cups to eco cups. Their stadium system functions like this: a person must pay an additional pound for their drink, and they can choose to return it after and refund their pound back or take the cup at home to reuse it.

The management reported that their system significantly reduced the waste they collect in the sports stadium--especially on single-use plastic.

Recycled sports equipment and apparel

Sustainability is one of the things big companies do--not just for the benefit of the brand, but to provide solutions and help the community too.

Adidas, the giant in sports equipment, partnered with Parley for the Oceans, an environmental organization, to produce shoes and swimwear that are made out of plastic waste from beaches and coastal areas. The goal is to remove plastic waste from the ocean and recycle it. In 2020 alone, they reported that they lifted 7,000 tons of plastic waste from the shores of Africa.

Responsible waste segregation at sports events

One of the things that must be learned by everybody is proper waste management. In India, Chinnaswamy stadium has a group of volunteers that orients the audiences on how to throw their waste properly. They also sort out the collected waste so that recyclable and biodegradable materials can be processed in facilities properly. The stadium provides eco bins that have allocations for different types of trash, and they also require the food sellers to opt for green alternatives in food containers, instead of plastic.

Influence to campaign for the eco-initiatives

Several athletes have set the course to give awareness to both the public and the companies about the impacts of what we do to our world regarding pollution. One of them is the Olympic sailing gold medallist Hannah Mills, who advocated talks about plastic waste. She said that through the reach of sports into the community, not just to the fans but to events and companies as well, we can influence and share the responsibility of protecting our environment.

Another is the historic act of Ben Lecomte, a long-distance swimmer, and activist. He swam both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in his lifetime to advocate the health of our oceans. His goal is to collect samples for researchers to study the state of our waters, make the public be aware of it, and engage the scientists to find solutions to our plastic waste problem.

Takeaway: The ball is in our court now to protect our environment.

Advocates always say that the change starts in you, but do individuals change the course without the initiatives of the big players? The ball is in the people’s court now. So, whatever role that you have in the sports industry, you must play your part to reduce single plastic use. It may look like a small step but its environmental impact will go a long way.