Fenway Park in Boston may be the oldest ballpark in Major League Baseball but that hasn’t stopped the venue from heading into a new frontier by going green. The venue has several initiatives to be carbon neutral and to be a more sustainable facility. The ballpark was even recognized in 2018 by Major League Baseball for having the highest percent of waste diverted from the trash of all the American League East Teams.
The 110-year-old ballpark has a robust single stream recycling program, resulting in 2,000 tons of material diverted from the trash since 2012. Not only does Fenway Park have strategic placement of recycling bins throughout the park, but they also have a designated team of volunteers that collect recyclable materials from fans in the stands.
The venue is also dedicated to composting any wasted food by teaming with their concession partners to keep organic materials out of the trash. Black Earth Compost provides pick up and composts food scraps at their facility in Gloucester. Considering the EPA found that New Englanders generate enough food waste annually to fill Fenway Park every 11 days, this is certainly a step in the right direction.
Waste reduction isn’t Fenway’s only target to become a more sustainable venue. The park also offsets its electricity consumption through Green-e® certified renewable energy certificates (RECs) using their ticketing revenue.
Are you a venue looking to follow in Fenway’s footsteps? RecyclingWorks in Massachusetts (RecyclingWorks) has specific guidance for diverting waste at stadiums and venues or check out the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Guide to Composting at Sports Venues.
RecyclingWorks also provides no-cost assistance to businesses and institutions to help maximize food waste diversion opportunities. Our website includes a number of tools, including guidance on collecting food scraps for composting, anaerobic digestion, or animal feed, and best practices for businesses contracting for organics hauling services. To speak with a food waste diversion expert, call our hotline: (888) 254-5525 or email us at info@recyclingworksma.com.