Croke Park Scores

In 2010 Croke Park gained BS 8901:2009 certification after a successful audit by SGS making it the world’s first stadium to receive this prestigious award for sustainable event management.

About BS 8901: 2009

BS 8901 is a sustainability management system for events. This relatively new standard is designed to help events organisations recognise their impact on the economy, society and environment.

It aims to maximise positive impacts, minimise negative impacts and foster balanced, enduring growth. This is achieved through greater:

• economic prosperity – ensuring long-term success, for example by generating strong income flows and controlling costs
• social responsibility – ensuring social progress by engaging and respecting staff, contractors and the community
• environmental responsibility – respecting the environment

Croke Park's Path to BS 8901: 2009

In 2008 the Cúl Green initiative was launched and set ambitious targets to help Croke Park reduce its carbon footprint. In May 2009 Croke Park gained ISO 14001:2004 environmental management system certification and announced it is one of the first net-carbon neutral stadiums in the world. Its ISO 14001-related environmental actions include:

• establishing an environmental policy
• complying with all environmental legislation
• minimising resources consumption and environmental impacts
• forming an environmental management group, comprising representatives from the stadium, GAA and on-site contractors
• setting environmental goals and monitoring and continuously improving performance
• encouraging staff, suppliers and contractors to adopt environmentally sound practices

 For more information on the Cúl Green initiative click here.

Croke Park’s environmental improvements include:

• reducing electricity consumption by 20% between 2008 and 2010, which is enough energy to power approximately 320 Irish homes per year. 
• opening recycling and composting facilities across the site and reducing waste to landfill by 54%. which is the equivalent of 600,000 gaelic footballs.
• sourcing all the stadium’s electricity from a wind farm
• installing advanced energy monitoring and building management systems
• fitting solenoid valves in the toilets, thereby saving 312,000 litres of water a day
• receiving over 105,000 energy-saving pledges on the Cúl Green website, for example from spectators prepared to share cars or use public transport

BS 8901 Assessment

BS 8901 adds economic and social considerations to the environmental aspects covered by ISO 14001 Organisations can choose to apply for ISO 14001, BS 8901 or both, and in either order and at any time.

BS 8901 shares many of the common management principles of other standards such as ISO 9001 (quality management) and ISO 14001. This includes the fundamental target-plan-docheck- review-revise cycle of continuous improvement.

Applying for and retaining BS 8901 involves a pre-certification assessment, the certification assessment itself and annual surveillance visits carried out by a third-party assessment body such as SGS.

SGS audited Croke Park under three main categories: environment, social and economic. Environmental practices scrutinised included recycling, reduction of carbon footprint and reduced use of energy and water; the social strand included health and safety, community and other stakeholder engagement, and the contribution of a contented and committed workforce; and the economic strand included assessments of financial and legal compliance and the management of contractors.

Sustainability Initiatives

Croke Park’s BS 8901-related sustainability initiatives include: publishing comprehensive sustainability, environmental and health and safety policies setting targets for using less energy and water, and for more recycling procuring from suppliers committed to sustainability improving public transport to the stadium providing a quarterly newsletter for all staff and contractors appointing a community liaison officer, partly to develop Croke Park’s Community Fund Scheme producing an employee handbook hosting at least 10 on-site activity days a year for children from across Ireland.

For Croke Park the benefits of BS 8901 include: an enhanced reputation, helping it to attract more events and sponsorship lower energy, water and waste handling costs clear strategies, processes and goals more integrated management decision-making stronger teamwork and a more motivated, focused workforce easier recruitment of top talent and increased retention.

Wider Potential

Croke Park now demonstrates best practice in sustainability and will be an example for other stadiums to follow. It will be used, for example, as a case study as part of efforts to ensure the 2012 London Olympics are the world’s first fully sustainable games.

Across the events industry BS 8901 is being used to drive continuous innovation, creativity and improvement. Venues can provide tickets for those who support community projects; event organisers can save paper and other materials by running events without free handouts; and on-site catering companies can offer menus based on lower-CO2 ingredients. BS 8901 is relevant to event organisers, venues, suppliers, contractors and trade associations or anyone who needs to consider the economic, social and environmental aspects of events.

For Further Information

Email sustainability@crokepark.ie for more details on sustainability at Croke Park.  To organise a sustainable event in Croke Park, email events@crokepark.ie or contact the conference and events team on 01 819 2300.