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Let’s play Green

August 29, 2023

Among the many remarkable changes that were ushered in the 20th century was the industrialisation of leisure. Think about this a bit. Today music, movies or sports are all multi-billion-dollar industries with audience (or consumers) in practically every corner of the world that has also created stars who have made their way into elite billionaire and millionaire clubs. Among these many leisure activities, sports in my opinion stands out as a prime candidate to understand how recreational activities can also be made sustainable.

Let me first acknowledge that sports is much more than just entertainment.  The universal appeal of sports is also because it promotes good physical and mental health and have always been a great medium to motivate young people to cultivate and imbibe good values like team spirit, sportsmanship, leadership etc. Nelson Mandela once said, “Sport has the power to change the world.  Sport has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where there was only despair.”

But sports in the 21st century is capable of delivering a lot more, one of them being environment sustainability. While most sports fans may not associate their favourite leisure activity with climate change or carbon footprint, the fact is sports is no different from any industrial or commercial venture that impact our environment. Of the approximately 150 sports stadiums in India, a third of which are cricket stadiums, only a handful use clean energy like solar power.  Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium became the world’s first solar powered cricket stadium in 2015, as part of its preparation for the Indian Premier League. Since then others have also followed suit including the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad that was inaugurated in 2020, is not only the world’s largest cricket stadium with a seating capacity of more than 130,000, but is also powered by solar rooftop. Globally, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was the first major sporting event in the world that made headlines with its green message – “Be Better, Together”.

But sustainable sports is much more than just using clean energy. From rainwater harvesting to waste treatment plants to using green cement and steel in construction, the scope for building sustainable sports infrastructure is quite vast.  The 2020 Tokyo Olympics, for example, showed us how to use recycled material including athletes’ beds made from cardboard, podiums made from recycled plastic, and medals that were made from recycled electronic devices – all adding up to an amazing ‘circular sports economy’.

To appreciate the value of sports in achieving our sustainability goals, we must first look at the big picture, not just the event i.e., a game or a tournament. Sports is a huge ecosystem, much like any industrial activity that heralded our modern civilisation. Vast quantities of natural resource go into sports from making equipment and merchandise to organising events that put enormous pressure on the environment. For example, day and night games have managed to draw huge crowds because of the convenience factor, particularly for the working population. The least we can do to counter the environmental impact of lighting up stadiums is to use renewable energy as the source of electricity. Since 2020-21, we even have a Formula E championship (electric racing cars), organised by FIA that made Formula One championship a sport patronised by millions around the world.

If we can shift our perspective a little bit and look at sports infrastructure as any other commercial or industrial equivalent, we will find ample ideas and ways to make sports more sustainable. Apart from choosing clean energy, by recycling water and waste and reusing concrete and steel from demolition sites to at least partly replace new materials we can create shining examples of how far we can go to makes sports greener.

There is also a sound economic rationale for going green in sports. The M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru has managed to cut its power consumption to a third (from 18 to 6 lakh units of power a year) and is even able to sell unused power to the local discom and earn some money in the process. 

Sustainable or green sports has huge scope in a country like India. We are not only a sports loving nation, but the sheer variety of sports that we host and play is pretty impressive. We are not just a cricket country anymore.  Recent successes in international sporting platforms like Olympics, Paralympics, Commonwealth Games or Asiad, in terms of medal hauls, have made a lot many more sports popular in India. Sustainable sports can be the gateway to living sustainable life too.

Disclaimer:

Statements in this press release describing the Company’s performance may be “forward looking statements” within the meaning of applicable securities laws and regulations. Actual results may differ materially from those directly or indirectly expressed, inferred or implied. Important factors that could make a difference to the Company’s operations include, among others, economic conditions affecting demand/ supply and price conditions in the domestic and overseas markets in which the Company operates, changes in or due to the environment, Government regulations, laws, statutes, judicial pronouncements and/ or other incidental factors.

For queries and information

Sarvesh Kumar,

Chief Corporate Communications - Tata Steel,

E-mail : sarvesh.kumar@tatasteel.com

About Tata Steel

  • Tata Steel group is among the top global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 35 million tonnes per annum.
  • It is one of the world's most geographically diversified steel producers, with operations and commercial presence across the world.
  • The group recorded a consolidated turnover of ~US$30.3 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2023.
  • A Great Place to Work-CertifiedTM organisation, Tata Steel Limited, together with its subsidiaries, associates, and joint ventures, is spread across five continents with an employee base of over 77,000.
  • Tata Steel has announced its major sustainability objectives including Net Zero Carbon by 2045, Net Zero Water consumption by 2030, improving Ambient Air Quality and No Net loss in Biodiversity by 2030.
  • The Company has been on a multi-year digital-enabled business transformation journey intending to be the leader in ‘Digital Steel making by 2025’. The Company has received the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse recognition for its Jamshedpur, Kalinganagar and IJmuiden Plants.
  • Tata Steel aspires to have 25% diverse workforce by 2025. The Company has been recognised with the World Economic Forum’s Global Diversity Equity & Inclusion Lighthouse 2023.
  • The Company has been a part of the DJSI Emerging Markets Index since 2012 and has been consistently ranked amongst top 10 steel companies in the DJSI Corporate Sustainability Assessment since 2016.
  • Tata Steel’s Jamshedpur Plant is India’s first site to receive ResponsibleSteelTM Certification.
  • Received Prime Minister’s Trophy for the best performing integrated steel plant for 2016-17, 2023 Steel Sustainability Champion recognition from worldsteel for six years in a row, 2022 ‘Supplier Engagement Leader’ recognition by CDP, Top performer in Iron and Steel sector in Dun & Bradstreet's India's top 500 companies 2022, No. 1 brand in India in the Mining and Metals industry in Top 100 brand rankings for 2023 by Brand Finance, and ‘Most Ethical Company’ award 2021 from Ethisphere Institute.
  • Received 2022 ERM Global Award of Distinction, ‘Masters of Risk’ - Metals & Mining Sector recognition at The India Risk Management Awards for the seventh consecutive year, and Award for Excellence in Financial Reporting FY20 from ICAI, among several others.

Photographs: Management and Plant facilities

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Website: www.tatasteel.com and www.wealsomaketomorrow.com

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