Super bowl stadium forgets that fans don’t care about the environment

As people piled into the stadium for the biggest event in sports, stadium officials tried to gear up for a push towards green. How? Prior to the event at Raymond James Stadium, one of the most spectacular stadiums in all of professional sports, stadium operators tried to cut costs in lighting and cooling while at the same time recycling all of their left over waste. The intent was good and the fact that they were able to power the stadium and its events with renewable energy was impressive, but once the game started, efforts seized.

The lure of the event is so impressive that it is hard to take one’s eyes off everything that is happening. In the span of a few hours, fans see multiple performances by major recording artists, F-16 fighter jets fly overhead, fireworks go off, and much more. The fact is, no matter what stadium operators do, fans are consumed by the game and not their social conscience to recycle.

According to officials, Raymond James Stadium offered biodegradable napkins, plates, forks and straws along with recycling bins for all plastic drinking bottles. Officials even said they recycled all of their cooking grease at the event.

Unfortunately, stadium officials made a few too many assumptions about the common fan. Those that have been at major sporting events know that there is a complete disregard by many to take care of their waste. Recyclables end up in trash bins, trash ends up in the recycling bins, and the majority of waste is swept up into a pile to be disposed of. Biodegradable or not, the trash is thrown into piles and put into our already troubling landfills. Let’s not also forget about the pre-game tailgaters that toss their grease into the parking lot.

The truth is, officials need to offer some sort of incentive to encourage recycling. Maybe it’s a dime a bottle using a collection machine or a coupon that companies would surely go for to bring in business in exchange for each bottle. Whatever it is, recyclables that end up in recycling bins help sustain resources. Let’s get the materials to last more than one life cycle.