The London Olympics will not shy away from its commitment to be the first "sustainable" games should budgets become stretched, organisers promised today.
The London Games has made a series of environmental commitments, including generating 20 per cent of its energy from renewable sources and transporting at least half of all construction materials to the site by water or rail.
However, with speculation mounting that tightening credit conditions will increase pressure on the Games' already stretched budgets, the organisers have today insisted the green measures are not under threat.
Speaking at a roundtable event earlier today, Simon Wright, director of infrastructure and utilities at the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), insisted many of the site's environmental commitments are not at loggerheads with cost commitments.
"Many of the plans go hand in hand and cost factors will not cause us to shy away from sustainability, particularly as many contracts are already agreed," he said.
For example, the ODA plans to cut water use by 40 per cent through the use of low-flow taps and rainwater collection systems, while materials will be locally sourced where possible and any concrete used will consist of at least 20 per cent recycled materials.
The site will also operate a closed-loop waste management system to ensure that waste materials are sent for reprocessing back into high-grade products.
Meanwhile, buildings will be "enveloped" with special insulation to reduce heat loss by 15 per cent, and the renewable energy target will be fulfilled by an onsite wind turbine and a wood chip-fired combined heat and power plant.
The organisers claim any further renewable infrastructure investments would not be cost effective as many of the buildings will only be temporarily in place for the course of the Olympics.
These temporary buildings will be deconstructed and then used elsewhere after the Games have finished – many building parts, including heating equipment, may also be hired.
Wright said the organisers are also aiming to discourage car travel to and from the venue.
"There will be no parking onsite, though there will be some park-and-ride facilities," he said. "The ticketing is specifically designed to encourage people towards public transport access, and we hope local people will walk and cycle to the site through specially provided green corridors."
An independent scrutiny body – Commission for a Sustainable London 2012 – has been set up to monitor progress against sustainability targets.
Plan hailed as "one of the most aggressive moves from a city" 23 Sep 2008
Wind turbines on the roof and fuel cells in the basement form just part of $350m project 25 Jun 2009
Siemens, Deutsche Bank, RWE and E.on ready to invest in ambitious plan to power Europe with clean electricity from Africa 17 Jun 2009
European Commission calls for North Sea wind energy grid, tighter building regulations and huge investment in energy efficiency 13 Nov 2008
Watchdog says that despite onset of recession, the London Olympics are broadly on track to meet green goals, although some areas of concern remain 08 May 2009
Survey of public sector IT managers reveals deep concern over ability to deliver on carbon-neutral targets 03 Jul 2009
Fresh funding will provide new wave energy research equipment and support research 03 Jul 2009
EPA hints it could soon raise efficiency bar for routers, modems and storage systems 03 Jul 2009
More news
From record-breaking solar panels to the International Renewable Energy Agency's new home, we round up the top stories from the past week 03 Jul 2009
Well, I hope they got a no win, no fee deal. I don't like being cynical (it's more of a congenital thing)... 03 Jul 2009
Recycling waste heat is nothing new, so why has the computer industry not kept up? 01 Jul 2009 More in-depth
Post your comment
Send an email to the Business Green editor at feedback@businessgreen.com
