This Week in Sustainability: On Super Bowl Week, the Seattle Seahawks and New York Both Go Green

| Josh Henretig

footballThis week, Triple Pundit looked at how one of the teams fighting for this year’s Super Bowl is also improving its environmental impact. The piece notes that over the past decade the Seattle Seahawks and their home stadium CenturyLink Field created the Defend Your Turf program, looking to engage in initiatives in four key areas: water conservation, waste reduction, energy efficiency and community engagement. The program has had wide-ranging success, and in 2012 CenturyLink Field reduced its water use by 15 percent, its energy consumption by 12 percent and topped the stadium’s adjacent event center with solar panels that cover 30 percent of the facility’s needs. The author also notes that in 2010 the team joined forces with other sports teams and local organizations to form the Green Sports Alliance, working with sports teams, leagues and venues to improve their environmental performance. With 200 teams and venues from 16 leagues joining the Green Sports Alliance, the Seahawks have shown their motivation not just on the field but in improving their environmental footprint as well.

While the Seahawks will bring with them to New York a commitment to decreasing their environmental footprint, the Empire State has similar commitments to sustainability. In fact, Environmental Leader published a piece on $21 million in newly available funding from New York to help dairy farmers turn their farm waste into energy. The funding will help install anaerobic digester technology, which takes heat from organic waste and turns it into renewable biogas which then produces electricity. As the piece notes, this will only add to an already successful waste to energy market, with earned revenues amounting to $17.98 billion in 2012 and projected to climb to $28.57 billion by 2016. While the Seahawks and New York will be focused on football this weekend, their long-term commitments to sustainability and reducing their environmental impact set them apart away from the football field as well.

Go Hawks!

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