The 2015 French Open at Stade Roland Garros draws in hundreds of thousands of tennis spectators over the course of two weeks. People from all over the world travel to the Roland Garros to watch the the tennis pros play at the French Open. At last year’s event, over 45,000 sandwiches and 75,000 bottles of water were sold at the various catering outlets in the stadium during the tournament. With the massive traveling and food and beverage consumption happening around the French Open, the French Tennis Federation takes sustainable development and caring for the environment very seriously. Here is a look at how the French Open at Stade Roland Garros is going green and addressing waste, recycling, and the transportation footprint.
Being Green – Recycling, Reducing Waste, Minimizing Pollution at the French Open
Reducing Waste and Recycling
The French Tennis Federation and Roland Garros are aiming to increase awareness of recycling and reducing waste. In 2014, eight tons of waste were separated using a public waste separation system. Six SmartPack Automatic Trash Compactors were used in 2014 to compact waste. In 2015, twenty-four SmartPacks are being used in pairs, one for general waste, and the other for recycling aluminum cans and plastic bottles. The Ecocup® has also been offered for a deposit to replace the throw-away plastic cup.
Reducing Global Warming Impact
The French Open Tournament has been running a promotional campaign since 2010 to encourage spectators to use transportation that minimizes global warming and pollution. They offer resources to metro lines, bus lines, car-pooling websites, and bike hire stations, and hybrid vehicles that generate lower CO2 emissions. They even offer a eco-calculator for evaluating which transportation method will get you to Roland-Garros with the lowest levels of CO².
Educating with Green Teams
For the fourth year in a row, “Green Teams” are roving around the stadium to interact with spectators about recycling, low-impact transportation, and sustainability.
With the massive amount of people that attend the French Open at Stade Roland Garros, it is great to see them taking steps towards going green and encouraging recycling, reducing waste, and minimizing the carbon impact to the environment.
