Croke Park has been a leader in green initiatives since 2008 having taken a holistic sustainable approach to stadium operations and developed a range of Environmental & Sustainability initiatives and projects.

These initiatives have focused on the three key pillars of Sustainability:  

1. Environment
2. Social
3. Economic 

In 2009 Croke Park became the first stadium in the world to be certified BS8901 by the international standards group SGS Ireland.  BS8901 is the benchmark for sustainable event management and the standard which venues involved in the London 2012 Olympic Games are required to meet. 

In addition to this Croke Park was also awarded ISO14001: 2004 certification by SGS Ireland in 2009 for environmental management, something we are also very proud of.

What is BS8901

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. The certification acknowledges excellence in event management. 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.

As part of the Sustainability Management System, Croke Park was audited under three categories which included the following: 

1. Environment: Recycling, reduction of carbon footprint, reduction in energy usage and water usage
2. Social: Health & safety, community relations, stakeholder engagement involvement of volunteers and a contented and committed workforce
3. Economic: Financial and legal compliance, supply chain management.

Benefits of BS 8901 for Croke Park include: 

• Enhanced reputation
• Helping 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 and focused workforce
• Easier recruitment and increased retention of top talent. 

What is ISO14001:2004

ISO 14001 is the International Standard for Environmental Management. The International Standards Organisation publishes best practice standards for industry and organisations throughout the world. The overall purpose of achieving ISO 14001: 2004 certification is to assist Croke Park in improved environmental performance.

In May 2009 Croke Park gained ISO 14001:2004 environmental management system certification and announced it as 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 with representatives from the stadium, GAA and stadium contractors
• Setting environmental goals and monitoring and continuously improving performance
• Encouraging staff, suppliers and contractors to adopt environmentally sound practices.

The success of this certification depended on the commitment from all levels and all functions within Croke Park, especially senior management. Croke Park will continue to review and evaluate its environmental management system to identify opportunities for improvement and audits are conducted at six monthly intervals to ensure continued compliance.

Cúl Green - A Winning Partnership

Cúl Green was a joint initiative between the GAA and Electric Ireland aimed at making Croke Park a carbon-neutral stadium. Find out more about its results.

Croke Park Environmental & Sustainability Results since 2008

Since the start of our sustainability journey in 2008 Croke Park has achieved the following Environmental and Sustainability results through engagement with staff, key stakeholders, contractors, patrons and visitors to the Stadium.

• Reduced Gas consumption by 29%
• Reduced Electricity consumption by 31%
• Reduced Water consumption by 28% (or 370,000 litres per day which is the equivalent of 108 Olympic sized swimming pools).
• Recycled or composted 62% of our waste (or 7,939,130 sliotars).
• A number of projects and programmes (sports camps, community fund, local recruitment, resident meetings) and the appointment of a Community Liaison Officer have been implemented within the local community.  

Initiatives which have made Croke Park Greener

• Sourcing stadium electricity from green resources
• Installing advanced energy monitoring and building management systems
• Fitting solenoid valves in the toilets (saving 370,000 litres of water per day)
• Cardboard baler
• Composter
• PIR’s (Passive Infrared Lights)

2012 Initiatives: Greener. On and off the pitch.

The aim of the Greener. On and off the pitch initiative is to build on the previous Cúl Green initiative to

• minimise the environmental impact of events at Croke Park
• encourage environmentally responsible development and staging of events
• raise awareness amongst stakeholders, contractors and staff to carry out their work at the Stadium in a Sustainable manner.  

Greener. On and off the pitch is Croke Park’s formal Sustainability project and focuses on key area’s such as:

1. Maintaining our position asone of the most sustainable sports venues in the world
2. Increasing recycling at Croke Park with a focus of achieving zero land fill by 2014
3. Continuing to reduce electricity, gas and water consumption
4. Developing effective and consistent communication tools to communicate the Sustainability message to staff, stakeholders, patrons and the public.  

Greener. On and off the pitch has been developed and implemented in conjunction with key stakeholders who are represented on the Stadium’s Environmental & Sustainability Management Group (ESMG) and play a key role in setting, driving and monitoring the stadium’s environmental & sustainability goals and objectives. 

The ESMG have set the following objectives under three area’s: Achieving, Reducing & Communicating (ARC). The following are our 2012 ARC environmental objectives:

For further information

Email sustainability@crokepark.ie for more details on sustainability at Croke Park or contact 01 819 2300.