Olympics Waste

Did you know this years Olympics taking place in Paris is set to be the greenest yet? There are several ways in which this years Games are contributing to waste prevention, from reducing the amount of waste produced in the construction of the athletes village to the waste produced by spectators. Paris have set the objective of recycling 80% of the waste produced by the Games this year.

The Athletes and their village. 

For the athletes, their medals will be made from scrap metal from the Eiffel Tower. The three types of medals will all differ in weight, but did you know that the gold medal weighs 529 grams (g) which is the equivalent of just over 35 aluminium drink cans? 

Before the Games have even begun waste has already been prevented. The athletes village which is housing 14,250 athletes during the Olympics and a further 8,000 during the Paralympic Games was created with reuse in mind, this means that once the Games have concluded the village will turn into affordable flats for low-income workers and students and the residents are set to move in during Spring 2025.

Whilst the athletes are living in the village they will be sleeping on beds that are made from 100% cardboard for the base and will be recycled in France after the events have finished. The mattresses will be made from recycled fishing nets which will follow the same system as Tokyo. 

Designated areas for the athletes have furniture made from recycled shuttlecocks, poufs made from parachute canvases and chairs made from recycled bottle tops. 

Food at the Olympics. 

The carbon footprint at Paris 2024 is expected to half from previous years and this is being done by sourcing 80% of food from France, 25% will come from 250km of the venues and food products that are needed due to cultural needs of athletes will be held to the highest environmental standards. All dairy will also be 100% french products. 

Reuse. 

The Olympics worldwide partner Coca-Cola have vowed to install 700 water and soda fountains across all Paris sites to encourage spectators to bring their own reusable bottles. You can find the many refill shops in Buckinghamshire here.

Tableware being used by the athletes and their staff will all be reusable. For spectators the containers that their food comes in will all be reusable and will predominantly be made from cardboard for recycling. 

Any food that is left over or food that has gone to waste will either be redistributed or composted.

Temporary structures such as tents, bungalows and stands are either being reused or recycled when the Games have come to an end. 

Reduce your waste at home

To find all our top tips on how you can reduce your own waste, check out our pages here.