The Paris Olympics set a high bar for sustainable development. Here’s how

The Olympics pose a dilemma for environmentalists and sustainability professionals who praise elite sport but balk at the huge greenhouse gas emissions of hosting live sporting events. The Paris Games from July 26 to August 11 break that cycle.

More than 11,200 athletes will compete in Paris — nearly four times as many as 100 years ago, when the city last hosted the world’s largest multi-sport event. They’ll be cheered on in person by 326,000 spectators. The estimated carbon footprint of this year’s games will be half that of the London and Rio events — about 1.75 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. (Tokyo is excluded from the comparison because there were no spectators.)

That projection is larger than the “carbon budget” that Paris’ sustainability team set seven years ago as part of the master plan that earned it hosting status. The decision to create a projection goes beyond the norm: In the past, cities have calculated emissions after an event has ended and offset the impact. The Paris team set forward-looking metrics for construction, biodiversity, access to mass transit, availability of plant-based foods and waste reduction, to name a few. (Here’s the methodology it uses.)

“They’re using existing barriers and structures to do this,” said Garima Sharma, an assistant professor of management at American University’s Kogod School of Business, pointing to the committee’s use of ISO standards to establish operational processes. “That gives them legitimacy and helps them achieve the performance they want.”

One of the biggest investments so far has been $1.5 billion to clean up the polluted Seine, which will host the first leg of the triathlon. “You can’t overstate what a huge project and accomplishment this is,” said Madeleine Orr, an assistant professor of sport ecology at the University of Toronto, adding that more needs to be done upstream to keep the waterway pristine once athletes and spectators return home.

The estimated cost of hosting the Olympic Games in Paris is $8.2 billion. France spent an additional $3.2 billion to upgrade arenas, public transportation, and other infrastructure. The committee did not detail the costs of specific sustainability measures; many of them are covered by corporate partnerships.

Here are the tactics that helped the Paris organizing committee realize this vision.

Strict restrictions on new construction

The International Olympic Committee has reviewed the requirements for host cities in 2020. One important thing that helps Paris reduce emissions is the decision to use existing arenas and facilities. Building new infrastructure is typically a major environmental burden associated with hosting the Olympics—around a third of the total.

Only one new sports facility, the Aquatics Centre, was built specifically for Paris 2024. It was built using bio-based materials, its interior features recovered and recycled products, and is powered by one of the largest urban solar farms in France.

The Olympic Village, built in a poor suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis, will be converted into residential apartments. Analysis suggests that downsizing construction has reduced carbon emissions by 47 percent compared with conventional approaches.

Diesel generators are not allowed

Paris has an abundance of low-carbon electricity available — 78 percent from nuclear and 19 percent from renewables — and the commission has made it a priority to ensure all facilities are connected.

That reduces the need for diesel generators used by media for broadcasting. They are typically the biggest on-site emitter during the Olympics — 4 million gallons were burned during the 2012 London Games. “It’s a huge deal,” Orr said, referring to the decision to prioritize electricity. It also required 8,000 “interventions” from local utility Enedis at a cost of $100 million.

Energy will account for about 5 percent of the event’s emissions. That’s about 80 percent less than traditional sporting events. The famous Olympic torch is lit with biopropane.

There are many public transport options

Transport emissions make up around one third of the CO2 emissions from the Paris Games, mainly due to flights to the venue.

All of the Paris 2024 venues are within a 10-kilometre radius, all accessible by public transport, as well as an extensive 34-mile network of cycle paths. A journey from the Olympic Village to any of the venues takes about half an hour.

The number of vehicles used by the committee itself — most of them hybrid and electric — has been reduced by a third compared to previous events.

The principle of a circular economy is key to the emissions reduction plan

Paris 2024 is the largest sporting event to adopt reusable cups, replacing 13 million single-use ones. Spectators can bring reusable bottles to use at 700 water and soda stations. The main goal is to halve the amount of single-use plastics distributed at the event.

In catering, the aim is to halve the average carbon footprint of the 13 million meals served during the games. This is partly due to the decision to source around 80 percent of the food, most of it plant-based, from France. Food scraps will be donated or composted to produce renewable gas. All tableware is reusable.

Around 6 million pieces of equipment will be used during the competition, and 90 percent of them will be given a “second life.”

Another Way to Justify Carbon Credit Purchases

To offset the impact, Paris 2024 has purchased 1.4 million carbon credits, including 1.3 million related to forest protection in Kenya and Guatemala, the distribution of cookstoves in Kenya, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and renewable energy installations in Senegal. In France, the committee supports reforestation initiatives.

The projects were vetted for integrity, measurable emissions reductions and biodiversity benefits, said Valerio Magiulo, CEO of Abatable, which has sourced the projects abroad. The committee prioritized creating economic opportunities in developing countries over making neutrality claims. “The Games were never meant to be neutral, even with the highest quality of offsets,” he said.