The purple track at the Stade de France uses environmentally friendly materials, about 50% of which come from recycled or renewable sources.
On July 26, local time, the Paris Olympics will officially kick off. In addition to the excitement on the field, one of the major concerns of this Olympic Games is whether the carbon reduction targets proposed by the Paris Olympic Organizing Committee can be achieved.
Since winning the bid, the Paris Organising Committee has declared that major sporting events must take responsibility for climate change. To this end, they have set an "ambitious" goal: to reduce the carbon footprint of the Games to half the average of the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic Games, i.e. 3.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
To this end, instead of assessing the carbon footprint after the Games and offsetting activities, the Games will set targets and strategies to reduce carbon impact before the Games, and will guide all work and decisions during the preparation and competition of the Games. In order to measure emissions more accurately, the Olympics will take into account all carbon emissions from the event, not only direct carbon emissions, but also indirect carbon emissions, such as the travel of spectators.
During the bidding phase, the Paris Organising Committee proposed to make use of the existing infrastructure or temporary venues in the centre of the capital as much as possible, reducing the construction of facilities and ensuring that they are always useful to the community. For example, the Olympic and Paralympic Villages, which are located on an industrial wasteland that is being developed in its own right, will be transformed into a sustainable urban area with homes, offices and shops, and will accommodate nearly 12,000 people living and working in the post-Olympic Village. The three 50-metre competition and warm-up pools, which were temporarily built for swimming, will also be donated to the three municipalities after the Games.
Whether it's tents, partitions, chairs, computers, or sports equipment or signage...... For each item, the organizer considers whether it is really needed and uses it centrally where possible. For example, the number of pieces of furniture has been reduced by almost 25 per cent from the initial 800,000 pieces needed to about 600,000 pieces, and under this principle, 90 per cent of items are prioritized for rental or use rather than purchase.
However, this green Olympics, which is regarded as unprecedented, has also been frequently complained about, especially the lack of air conditioning in the Olympic Village, mattresses made of recycled cardboard, and vegetarian meals, which have caused concerns about the athletes' experience and the state of the competition.
In praise and complaining, persistence and compromise, the Paris Olympics slowly kicked off, and in any case, this ambition and practice will leave some valuable lessons for the history of the Olympic Games.
Paris, France, during the Olympic Games, cycling became the first choice for most people.
Paris, France, Olympic Village Germany team indoor environment. The 10 core commitments of the Paris Olympics on the circular economy include a 50% reduction in single-use plastics for food and beverages, and 100% reuse of venues and furniture.
After the Olympics, the wooden flooring of the International Broadcasting Centre in Le Bourget will be repurposed.
The Grand Palais Overlay, a predominantly timber structure with detachable elements for easy reuse.
After the Olympics, Paris pledged to donate three swimming pools to society.
Author: He Bin
Image source: Visual China, Olympic official website
Photo editor: Zhang Xu
Duty Editor: Wan Xiaojun