There is still significant work to do if the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games are to fully to live up to the environmental promises organisers made, the London Assembly said today. [1]
A new report – Going for Green – from the Assembly’s Environment Committee today welcomes efforts to make London 2012 the most sustainable Games in recent history.[2] It praises innovative work to date to map and reduce the event’s carbon emissions, recycle waste, avoid sending rubbish to landfill and use a low-emission Olympic fleet.
However, the report also warns that, environmentally, London 2012 may not be as "transformative" as originally hoped and more must be done as the event approaches to set a new benchmark for future Games and other major sporting events.
The report describes failing to secure more electric vehicles for the Olympic fleet as a "missed opportunity", notes it is still not clear how carbon emissions from travel to London will be reduced and says a target on renewable electricity during the staging phase of the Games is unlikely to be met.[3]
The capital’s air quality has also not improved as hoped since 2005, which means there are forecast to be harmful levels of the pollutant nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in crucial parts of London in 2012. The report therefore calls for action to ensure NO2 levels are reduced to bring them closer to EU limits by the time of the Games.
Darren Johnson, AM, Chair of the Environment Committee said: "We fully support London 2012’s ambition to be the most sustainable Olympic and Paralympic Games in recent history, and there has been some excellent work towards that goal.
"However we don’t want to see environmental standards compromised in the run-up to what I am sure will be a fantastic Games.
"London’s air quality is a particular cause for concern, as failing to reduce levels of pollutants could have consequences for London’s international reputation as well as the health of those attending the event.
"We also need to see clear targets for re-using temporary materials, more detail on how organisers will promote sustainable travel and plans for recycling facilities on site and around London."
The report says London’s 2012’s approach to mapping its carbon footprint is "groundbreaking" and it welcomes the organisers’ aim to re-use or re-cycle 90 percent of temporary materials.
However it also sets out work that is still needed to help ensure the Games lives up to its environmental aspirations, including recommendations that:
* LOCOG should produce a plan to promote sustainable travel at the point of ticket sales to help cut carbon emissions from spectators’ journeys to the Games
* Organisers need to make clear how they will quantify future carbon savings, which they believe will result from the Games, to compensate for unavoidable emissions needed to stage the event.
* The Mayor should publish, by December 2011, NO2 concentration modelling for Games time, taking into account traffic and other activity related to the Games. The Mayor should take, or secure from the Government, action to ensure that NO2 levels are reduced as far as possible towards the EU limit (or, failing that, the tolerance margin) by the time of the 2012 Games.
* London 2012 and the GLA should set targets for the re-use of temporary materials and say how it will be monitored
* By June 2011, the GLA should publish plans for how London 2012 sustainability standards will be applied at the live sites they will run and in cultural events which the Mayor sponsors throughout the capital and how these will be monitored and reported on.
* Plans should be set out by June 2011 for best-practice recycling facilities on site and around London
Notes for Editors:
1. The report, Going for Green – Progress towards staging a sustainable Olympic and Paralympic Games, is available here
2. The environmental aspirations of the London 2012 Games are outlined the London 2012 Sustainability Plan: Towards a One Planet 2012 which is available here
3. Organisers aimed to secure a fifth of Games-time electricity from renewable sources. See page 19 of the London 2012 Sustainability Plan: Towards a One Planet 2012 which is available here
4. The report will be considered for formal agreement on 1 December 2010.
5. As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.