UNEP
Report Spotlights Achievements and Highlights
Some Shortcomings of 2008 Games
25th Session of UNEP's
Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment
Forum 16-20 February
Nairobi, 18 February
2009 - The Beijing Olympics met if not exceeded
many of its pledges on the environment,
according to an assessment by the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
From reducing air pollution
to big investments in public transport and
renewable energies, the organizers made
major efforts to ensure that the 2008 Games
marked a step forward in terms of an eco-friendly
mass spectator sporting event.
These are some of the
conclusions of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
- Final Environmental Assessment, which
was released on 18 February during the UNEP
Governing Council meeting.
The report underlines
that more could have been done on engaging
with Non-Governmental Organizations and
cutting the Olympic and Paralympic Games'
carbon footprint.
But overall the UNEP
assessment, conducted by independently appointed
assessors, concludes that Beijing raised
the environmental bar and the Games left
a lasting legacy for the city.
These achievements are
all the more impressive given that the Games
were held in a rapidly developing city in
a country facing multiple development challenges
in the first decade of the 21st century.
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General
and UNEP Executive Director who attended
the summer Olympics, said: "The public
attention of the world focused on the Beijing
Games and whether the authorities could
pull off a landmark event on many fronts
including the environment. They have fulfilled
the promise of a Green Games in many areas
including public transport, waste treatment
and green Olympic venues."
The challenge now facing
Beijing is how to consolidate the achievements
of the Games and turn them into a green
legacy in the long term. UNEP's assessment
of Beijing's achievements and challenges
also provides key recommendations for the
organizers of the Games in Vancouver, London
and Sochi - as well as other mass sporting
events - as they strive to realize their
goals and set the environmental bar ever
higher.
The Beijing Games and
the environment
The Beijing organizers'
goal was to offer a 'Green Olympics' to
the world - overall, it is estimated that
the authorities in China invested more than
US$17 billion on environmental projects
for the Games.
This plan was laid out
in a series of twenty key environmental
commitments ranging from the improvement
of the city's transport infrastructure to
the upgrading of the waste system and an
increase in the city's green coverage. The
city authorities also achieved a complete
phase-out of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)
- an ozone-damaging greenhouse gas -years
ahead of the 2030 target.
Along with environmental
improvements across the city, a powerful
legacy of the Games is increased awareness
of environmental issues in China, particularly
among Beijing residents and businesses.
Conclusions and recommendations
The report highlights
several areas where the Beijing Olympic
organizers exceeded their commitments, including:
On emissions, the organizers
had committed to implementing vehicle emission
standards equal to Euro II for light vehicles
- in fact, Beijing switched to Euro IV emission
standards for cars in time for the Games.
The greening of Beijing
and the Olympic venues, with the creation
of 720 green spaces in central Beijing.
Since winning the bid to host the Olympic
Games, approximately 8,800 hectares of green
space was developed using more than 30 million
trees and rose bushes.
The number of blue sky
days(days with an Air Pollution Index of
100 or below) rose from less than 180 in
2000 to 274 days in 2008.
Waste classification
and recycling goals were exceeded by 2 per
cent and 5 per cent, respectively. Further,
hazardous and medical waste treatment facilities
were expanded and updated, all solid waste
was sorted in venues, and the recycling
rate in the Olympic venues was 23 per cent
higher than the committed level.
The authors also identified
challenges in a few areas, including:
The lack of mandatory
guidelines for Olympic suppliers on materials
including timber.
A missed opportunity
on engaging with Non-Governmental Organizations
and benefiting from their expertise from
the outset of the Games preparations.
Air quality
Air quality was by far
the most prominent environmental issue the
Olympic organizers and the Beijing municipal
authorities had to manage. Indeed it has
been an issue for several previous Olympic
Games, including Los Angeles and Athens.
The report notes that
"significant efforts before and during
the Games were focused on improving Beijing's
air quality" and that "as a result,
air quality improved significantly".
Studies show that the
special measures taken for the Olympic Games
- in conjunction with weather conditions
in August - led to reductions in carbon
monoxide (CO) by 47 per cent; nitrogen dioxide
(NO2) by 38 per cent; volatile organic compounds
(VOC) by 30 per cent; particulate matter
(PM10) by 20 per cent; and sulphur dioxide
(SO2) by 14 per cent.
The Games also "greatly
increased public awareness of air quality"
in Beijing, leading the public to press
for continued efforts to sustain the improved
quality of life experienced during the Games.
However, the report
notes that "there remains significant
room to improve Beijing's air quality"
- the PM10 standard in the city remains
a challenge.
Future air quality challenges
in Beijing are likely to focus on the smaller
particles (PM2.5), which are not currently
subject to standards in China but raise
health issues.
Transport
The Beijing organizers'comprehensive
measures to cut emissions and improve public
transportation in the sprawling city included
a switch more stringent vehicle emission
and fuel quality standards in 2008, in line
with Euro III and Euro IV emission standards.
The authorities also
improved the city's public transport infrastructure,
bringing the number of railway tracks from
four to eight. Some of the temporary measures
introduced during the Games - including
a ban on heavily polluting vehicles and
restrictions on the number of cars in the
city centre - were extended for several
months after the Games.
The report concludes
that the Games played a crucial role in
Beijing's transition to more stringent vehicle
standards and smoothed the way for the Beijing
authorities and China's Central Government
to implement future sustainable transport
initiatives.
However congestion remains
a challenge, with 1,000 new vehicles registered
daily. The authors recommend that the city
further expand its public transport capacity
by building more subways and railways, and
consider policy options including tax cuts
for clean vehicles and congestion fees in
crowded areas.
The report also recommends
that the integrated approach for fuels and
vehicles taken in Beijing be pursued at
the national level.
Energy
Reducing Beijing's dependence
on coal and improving energy efficiency
and air quality were a priority for the
Game organizers.
The report notes that
the Olympic Games accelerated the introduction
of energy-efficient infrastructure in Beijing
- more than 20 per cent of the total electricity
consumed in all the venues was supplied
by renewable energy - and that the Games'
showcase of best practices in clean energy
and energy efficiency "provided a basis
for the organizers of other mass events
to learn from".
The city of Beijing
continues to rely on coal for 40 per cent
of its energy consumption, and the report
recommends "a more deliberate effort
to reduce coal consumption in Beijing, in
tandem with increasing the supply of clean
and renewable energy".
Water
Protecting Beijing's
limited water supply was a key objective
of the organizers, and the report concludes
that the measures they took "serve
as an international example of creative
and aggressive measures that can be taken
to minimize water use, maximize the efficient
use of existing water resources and protect
the water ecosystems".
To build on these achievements,
the report recommends that the Beijing Municipal
Government ensure that innovative water-efficiency
measures (including storm water capture
and storage) be increasingly applied throughout
the city, especially in all new buildings
and developments.
The authors also say
the International Olympic Committee should
promote in all the cities hosting Olympic
events the adoption of sustainable water
management strategies that will benefit
host cities well beyond the staging of the
Games.
Waste
Beijing achieved all
of its commitments in the area of waste
- waste classification and recycling goals
were exceeded, and the in-venue recycling
rate was 23 per cent higher than the committed
level.
The report recommends
that additional policies and infrastructure
be used to increase waste treatment and
capacity, along with economic incentives
to complement waste reduction and more comprehensive
policies and regulations on waste and recycling.
Green venues
The report praises Beijing's
"remarkable results in incorporating
an array of environmental elements into
the planning, construction and management
of Games venues".
In several areas, particularly
efficient design and renewable energy use,
the Games pioneered technologies and planning
that leave a green legacy for further planning
across China, but also for the organizers
of other mass events.
Areas where there is
room for improvement include sustainable
forestry - with a lack of mandatory timber
purchasing guidelines for the Beijing venues
- as well as the lack of a systematic environmental
footprint analysis to assess the benefits
of the green measures.
The IOC should encourage
future host cities to invest in new and
innovative approaches in energy efficient
design and water-saving technologies, and
to adopt mandatory purchasing policies for
Games-related construction materials.
Climate neutrality
For the first time for
a global sports event, Beijing's climate
neutrality programme took into account the
carbon emissions from international flights.
However, the lack of a clear methodology
and reliable figures make it difficult for
UNEP to assess the carbon footprint of the
Games and the impact of the measures to
mitigate and offset the emissions.
The report says organizers
of upcoming major sports events should be
encouraged to seriously look at their carbon
footprint and analyze primary data from
events. It would also be useful for the
IOC and other sport organizations to come
up with a harmonized standard for addressing
the issue of carbon neutrality in sport.
Relations with Non-Governmental
Organizations
The report says the
Beijing Organizing Committee missed an opportunity
to fully engage with NGOs and benefit from
their expertise from the outset of the Games
preparations. The organizing committee only
began engaging NGOs from the end of 2006,
by which time the construction of most Games
facilities was nearing completion and many
policies were already in place.
The authors say it would
be useful for the Beijing Municipal Government
to engage NGOs in discussions on how to
carry forward and reinforce the full range
of environmental measures undertaken for
the Games.
Notes to Editors
This UNEP report follows
a memorandum of understanding between the
organization and the Beijing 2008 Organizing
Committee of the Olympic Games (BOCOG) in
2005 in which UNEP offered assistance to
achieve environmentally friendly Games.
As part of this agreement,
UNEP conducted a review and published a
report on the environmental performance
of the Beijing Olympic Committee in October
2007. http://www.unep.org/sport_env/Activities/beijingConf07/media/index.asp
UNEP also pledged to
conduct this final assessment to review
the impact of the environmental measures
that were implemented by Beijing for the
Games. Beijing 2008 Olympic Games - Final
Environmental Assessment is available on
the UNEP website www.unep.org
This report, whose findings have been shared
with the International Olympic Committee
and the BOCOG, is based on several field
visits to China by UNEP staff and experts
from 2007 to December 2008, as well as the
analysis of data from the Beijing Municipal
Government and BOCOG, and liaison with relevant
NGOs.
For more information on the UNEP Governing
Council, please visit http://www.unep.org/gc/gc25/
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson, Office
of the Executive Director
Theodore Oben, UNEP Chief of Sports &
the Environment
Anne-France
Shereen Zorba
