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Baseball going green
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The green green grass of Shea, photo by Marlene H. Phillips
I've got to admit, baseball has me pretty distracted this week. Hard to concentrate on politics when you've got nail biter games like last night's thrilling Rockies/Phillies finale. But I've managed to combine the two, thanks to an uplifting article I found on Climate Progress.
One of the games scheduled for Coors Field in Denver had to be postponed this past weekend because of snow and bitter cold (although the average high temperature for October in Denver should be a balmy 51). It's very possible that's a harbinger of things to come; Sports Illustrated pointed this out to sports fans in 2007, in a lengthy examination of how global warming is changing everything including how and where sports are played.
So it was a bit of good news to read that Major League Baseball is committed to becoming as green as the grass they play on. According to the article on Climate Progress, the MLB has worked with the non-profit group Natural Resource Defense Council to develop green plans for each of its 30 professional baseball teams. They're going to incorporate small steps like recycling and buying locally to major renovations involving solar energy and water conservation.
Some of the teams involved in this entertaining post season have been leading the way toward creating more environmentally friendly baseball environments. Case in point: the winner of that exciting game last night. In 2008, the same year they were crowned World Champs, the Philadelphia Phillies became the first MLB team to join the Green Power Partnership. One of their more unusual efforts to go green involved an interesting twist on the usual fan giveaway; instead of the ubiquitous bobble heads (wonder how many of those are in landfills everywhere), 100 lucky Phillies fans received a one-year credit toward making their homes more energy efficient. Another team in this year's post season is hard at work greening up their ballpark. The Los Angeles Dodgers are making significant changes to Chavez Ravine, including increasing the number of trees in the stadium vicinity by a whopping 90% as they rip up some of the all-encompassing asphalt that surrounds the stadium and transforming it into a "Green Necklace" of landscaping. A spokesperson for the Natural Resource Defense Council said Dodger Stadium has a chance of becoming "the most environmentally sustainable stadium in the country."
But right now that honor belongs to a team that was out of contention for post season play in, oh, May. The Washington Nationals play in the first stadium, of any major athletic sport, to be certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. Nationals Park "incorporates a variety of sustainable design elements," including the use of local and regional building material, drought resistant landscaping, and reflective roof materials. The Park received a silver certification for being a sustainable site, revitalizing the area, and providing easy access to public transportation. Great work, Nationals. Now if you can only do something about your pitching staff...
Other professional sports are also going green; the Natural Resource Defense Council is working with the NBA. But it would be fitting if baseball led the way, because all of us who are fans of the sport share that common remembrance of the first time they saw a baseball stadium. A Giants pitcher named John Curtis first saw the Polo Grounds and I first saw Shea, but his recollection is the same as mine: "I remember it so well-the green grass and the green stands. It was like seeing Oz." Let's hope the future of Oz is not just emerald green, but sustainably so.
Wonder who the Dodgers will start in game one against the Phillies...
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