Hold on to your long boards, ladies and gentlemen, the Summer X Games is now underway in sunny Los Angeles, Calif. And while I can’t say I personally would compete in a sport where one must hurl oneself through the air and then land oneself atop a foot-long piece of wood on wheels, I do applaud the Games’ efforts to leave as little a footprint as possible.
But these guys aren’t just jumping on the green-event bandwagon; they’ve actually been at this greening thing for a while, as 12-time medal-winner and eco-activist Bob Burnquist can attest.
And while it would be difficult for any event attracting some 138,000 people to be truly green-gelic, X Games organizers can point to some very real successes: Last summer, they kept more than 70 percent of the waste generated from ever reaching a landfill — in part by recycling more than 11,000 pounds of empty beverage containers.
Here’s some of what they have planned this year:
- In addition to your usual cans and bottles, construction materials, metals, and electronics will also be recycled.
- Fans who "get caught recycling" will receive tokens they can redeem for prizes at the Global Inheritance TRASHed Recycling Store.
- Grease from staff-catering foods will be turned into biodiesel.
- Skate and bike ramps will be made from FSC-certified wood.
- Carpoolers or public-transit-users will get a "special prize" for their efforts to reduce car traffic.
- In cooperation with the National Arbor Day Foundation, 500 trees will be planted for each athlete participating in X Games 13.
- Environmental Best Practices Guidelines will be distributed to vendors, and other educational materials will be shared with staff and spectators.
