Coliseum aims for zero-waste gamedays
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum sported 150 new “eco stations” at the first 2015 USC football game against Arkansas State in an effort to forward the new “zero waste” initiative. In collaboration with USC’s Office of Sustainability, the 90,000-seat venue transformed its trash cans into recycling and compost bins.
Brian Grant, director of operations at the Coliseum, explained how some types of packaging at the venue must be changed, but that overall, the compost and recycling streams seemed to work. They generated a greater volume of recyclables and compost materials than expected at the first game.
“We saw a lot of people really make that split-second decision to recycle what was recyclable and compost the others,” Grant said. “It’s such a huge help to have that kind of engagement from our patrons because without them, this initiative would be so much more challenging.”
Sustainability program manager Halli Bovia explained how decreasing stadium waste has been a goal since 2012.
“We’ve always had the vision of reducing waste and going for a zero waste stadium,” she said.
“Zero-waste” is defined as diverting 90 percent or more of waste materials from landfills through composting, repurposing and recycling. Food vendors at the Coliseum now use environmentally-friendly cutlery, cups, napkins, boxes and trays, which will all be composted. After about three to four weeks of decomposition, the materials are sold as premium compost to Central Valley farms.
Grant said that when he started at USC in 2013, all waste was treated like mixed trash.
“It was immediately evident that we had to establish a new system for our waste, so I started working with Halli to see what the Coliseum was capable of in terms of diversion,” he said.
Grant hopes that the initiative will create a more sustainable future for the Coliseum.
“The Coliseum has one of the longest and most prestigious histories in the country. It’s our responsibility to make sure that we manage the facility in a way that both honors that history but also focuses on a sustainable future,” Grant said. “We hope that this initiative helps create a long-term culture of environmentally sustainable practices at the Coliseum.”
Minimizing the environmental impact of the ninth-largest college football stadium in the country has become a priority for the Office of Sustainability.
“These events have large waste footprints or large geological footprints,” Bovia said. “Reducing the impact has a dual purpose in both reducing a significant waste impact and reaching several thousand people in one location. It gives us the opportunity to do this with some higher visibility.”
Bovia also said it will be hard to move these eco-stations to campus because it is increasingly more difficult to control the materials people bring to campus from home. It is easier to manage waste disposal at the closed stadium.
On opening day, signs in the L.A. Coliseum and messages on social media showed fans how to dispose of their trash. Fans were also encouraged to take part in the Tailgate Waste Diversion program, which involved around 350 educators and volunteers helping recycle aluminum cans as well as glass and plastic bottles.
USC has been part of the Green Sports Alliance since 2013, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching healthy, eco-friendly practices to sports leagues, teams, venues and fans.
In 2008, USC created the Office of Sustainability to improve sustainable practices on campus. The office also develops outreach programs for the university and the local community. A group of students, faculty and staff works together on strategies to facilitate these sustainable activities.