With the Paris Summer 2024 Olympic Games concluding last night, we thought it would be a good time to evaluate how the event fared in terms of sustainability.
Of course, any large event such as the Olympics is going to produce an abundant amount of carbon emissions from its construction, transportation needs, and energy use. But after doing some digging, we were happy to report that this year’s Paris organizers put sustainability center stage.
In previous years, the Olympics left a large carbon footprint on the environment. For example, the last two summer Olympic Games held in Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro respectively, released more than 2.7 million to 4.5 million tons of carbon emissions into the atmosphere, according to Earthday.org.
Trying to avoid this, the Paris 2024 Olympics made the decision to set a new benchmark for sustainability. The board reevaluated its carbon budget and committed to cutting the carbon emissions in half, with a carbon budget of 1.5 million metric tons of CO2.
To do this, transportation needed to be looked at carefully.
The effects of transportation are a leading cause of CO2 gas emissions. Therefore, they encouraged the public to use Paris’s extensive public transportation networks, with special Olympic lanes provided to ensure efficient transportation. The city also enhanced its bicycle infrastructure with dedicated lanes, additional bike-sharing programs, and incorporated the use of more electric vehicles.
When it comes to power, the Olympic venues and villages used renewable energy sources, such as solar panels and wind turbines. Advanced energy management systems were also installed to optimize energy use.
Additionally, the Paris Olympics used existing venues instead of constructing new facilities from scratch. Iconic sites such as the Stade de France and the Grand Palais hosted events. This significantly reduced the environmental impact of new construction.
However, there were a few critics who have accused this year’s Olympics of “greenwashing” with some environmental missteps, such as coral reef damage in Tahiti and unnecessary concrete use.
Despite the critics though, the 2024 Paris Olympics set a new standard for sustainability in large-scale events by integrating green infrastructure, renewable energy, and sustainable transportation.
This commitment ensured a positive impact during the events and left a lasting legacy for future generations. The world will hopefully continue to look to the Paris Olympic Games with hope for a sustainable future.
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