Are the Olympics Considering its Environmental Impact? Yes and No
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The Olympics is one of the most celebrated traditions in human history. It is the largest peacetime event and an epic display of humanity’s most astonishing athletic accomplishments. It is a time to bask in the revelry of your nation and its people while exposing yourself to the world’s seemingly unending diversity. With all the good the Olympics has to offer, it is far from perfect. With the Paris 2024 Summer Games long past, it’s time to reflect — what is the Olympics’ environmental impact?
The Most Unsustainable Aspects of the Olympics
Hosting an Olympics puts intense ecological and social pressures on any country. Cities spend years planning for this event for a reason. Without consideration, the Olympics could turn from the world’s most cherished competition to a symbol of environmental destruction. Historically, it hasn’t been as keen on cleaning up its carbon footprint, because the nature of The Games is inherently excessive and wasteful.
Travel
Excessive air mileage is the first problem. Shipping athletes and attendees worldwide is expensive for the atmosphere and logistics teams. Aviation fuel is one of the most deceptively strenuous sources of harm on the planet.
The spectators cause an enormous amount of emissions — amounting to 2,490 thousand tons in Rio 2016. Once people get there, they have to eat, travel, and use water and electricity. This adds up considering the mass exodus of people arriving in foreign cities just to see their favorite athletes represent their country.
Waste Generation
Another problem is waste, which comes in many forms. Food supplies, single-use plastics, construction materials, water waste, and more are featured in a long list of trashed resources. Olympics have had questionable waste management operations in previous years, so making it more comprehensive, circular, and sustainable is crucial.
Energy Use
Energy consumption is another major contributor to eco-consciousness. Every facility needs lights on, televisions and cameras running, pools warmed, air conditioning at full-blast, and Wi-Fi capable of hosting countless people. These stressors require data centers and tons of electricity. The amount of e-waste produced by this event is also likely higher than most perceive. The Tokyo Games attempted to curb this by collecting 78,985 tons of e-waste the Games demanded.
Habitat Destruction and Overall Displacement
To erect new structures, resource- and energy-intensive construction needs to happen. This moves out species from their homes. But, it also puts out citizens. Entire neighborhoods, typically of marginalized communities, have to be permanently or temporarily evicted to make space for The Games.
The Sustainability Narrative of the Paris Summer 2024 Games
The Paris 2024 Games aimed to be the most eco-friendly Olympics of all time. Was the Olympics’ environmental impact curbed by its determination? Here is a summary, outlining the some efforts in each domain of the event.
Improvement Area | Actions |
Reducing emissions | 50% cut, using London 2012 and Rio 2016 for comparisons for all scopes of emissions |
Venue | Minimize new construction by leveraging already existing or temporary, reusable infrastructure |
Water sports and aquatics center | Used solar panel roofing, has upcycled seating, uses bio-sourced foundations, and other climate-aware features |
Olympic Village | Used 94% recovered materials, rooftop solar, geothermal cooling, and native plants for green areas |
Energy | 100% local renewable energy with no diesel generators |
Food | Doubled plant-based options for visitors, cut single-use plastics by 50%, reused catering equipment, and installed free water stations |
Transportation | Designed venues to be closer together to optimize for eco-friendly options and reduced Olympic fleets by 37% |
Circular economy | Mapped existing resources to minimize new extraction for goods and promised a second life for 90% of equipment and goods |
However, in order for Paris to be totally sustainable, it needed to be more inclusive. Social justice, equity, and diversity are integral to the games. Did Paris succeed?
The games touted the slogan “Games Wide Open,” signaling a commitment to inclusivity and gender parity. It is the first games in history to have complete gender parity, meaning women comprised 50% of the competitors.
The games also had the most gender-balanced program, with 28 of 32 events with full equality. It was also a unique games because over half of the medals were open to female athletes. As a bonus, the Opening Ceremonies encouraged nations to have diverse flag bearers.
Exactly 193 athletes in the LGBTQ+ community represented many home nations, making it one of the most accepting in history.
Additionally, media coverage promised to deliver more coverage of people of color from diverse nations. With the introduction of Breaking at the Olympics, it brought a uniquely Black and Latinx perspective to the event.
What Future Olympics Can Learn
Unfortunately, as socially impactful as the games were, there were several oversights from a social justice point of view. This includes:
- Discrimination-prone surveillance systems
- Eviction of vulnerable populations before the event
- Imposition of bans against athletes wearing headscarves
Mending these inclusivity challenges will be a hurdle, but it begins with fans voicing their concerns, athletes banding together for regulatory change, and convincing stakeholders these issues are important. This will become even more of a hot-button issue in the future, primarily as transgender athletes battle federal legislation against their rights, which directly impacts their future as an Olympian.
From a carbon emissions and waste standpoint, there are plenty of improvements subsequent events can implement. They include but are not limited to:
- Using found materials to make Olympic medals
- Incorporating composting and reuse in waste management
- Transitioning to all-electric fleets
- Limiting new construction more
- Sourcing food locally
- Heightening the digital experience to prevent in-person travel
- Educating athletes, coaches, event holders, and nations
- Reconsidering previous host cities for future Games
Another necessity is the IOC must understand the green growth fallacy. Expanding operations, regardless of whether or not everything is eco-friendly, is still increasing demand and using more resources. While making The Games bigger and grander than ever is a priority for every event, degrowth while adjusting to green transformations should be encouraged.
The Olympics Environmental Impact of the Future
The sustainable future of the Olympic Games will only get better, using 2024 as a foundation. There is still more room to grow, but the strides Paris made give competitors and spectators hope they will enjoy this celebration of sport without guilt. Take time today to consider how the Olympics’ environmental impact could change how people view international collaboration — it could change the world.
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About the author
Jane Marsh
Starting from an early age, Jane Marsh loved all animals and became a budding environmentalist. Now, Jane works as the Editor-in-Chief of Environment.co where she covers topics related to climate policy, renewable energy, the food industry, and more.