A nudge, consensus, and renewable energy
A brief mid-week post
What would a green future for football look like 10 years from now?
If you have not yet done so, please give your views on the above question through this link. You have until Friday and can do it anonymously. All answers long or short are welcome. Thanks for all the responses so far, and also the ideas for future questions!
I’ll be back with the usual fortnightly round-up early next week including a summary of responses to the question. With Green Football Weekend upon us, I expect there will be lots to report on. In the meantime, below are some thoughts on a couple of topical issues.
Fran
Consensus
In the UK, in a visit last week to meet Dale Vince who is Chairman of Forest Green Rovers FC, Thangam Debbonaire MP, the Shadow Secretary of State for Sports and Culture said …
"Labour will consider how through better reporting, research and guidance we can unleash the power of football to tackle climate change and improve fan experience"
The UK Government has itself said in August 2023 that:
“We will convene a forum of government departments, experts, and organisations across the sports and physical activity sector to share expertise, guidance, and support, which will help the sector to implement and deliver on its ambition to become more environmentally sustainable.”
There are some important differences in emphasis and focus between the two statements, and there is no further detail behind either. Nevertheless what we can see emerging - at least at a very headline level - is something of a political consensus on the need for Government to step in on the sport and sustainability agenda.
While some clubs are making progress in some areas, these statements should not come as a surprise. The UK Government has said recently that a lot more work is needed in all sports to turn talk on reducing environmental impact into more action. Also, a new European Commission Report says that the sector has a widespread lack of understanding of its environmental impacts, a scarcity of data and the frequent absence of any strategy. And survey after survey shows that football fans want more action on environmental sustainability.
What could these political statements mean in practice for further action? How might they differ in delivery? Without more detail, it’s hard to tell. Either could lead to new and impactful policy interventions or, at the other extreme, to some window-dressing announcements. In an election year, it highlights the importance of engaging further with politicians and the policy-making process to push for tangible Government actions to help drive progress.
100% Renewable Energy
As we head into a period when clubs will be issuing their annual reports, we will likely read a lot more about how some of them are purchasing 100% renewable electricity and/or gas. Quite often this is prominently placed within the environmental reports, or given its own special attention. For instance, Spurs have just put out a post on their renewable energy. That’s all good news, right?
The Committee on Climate Change has said that “in most cases within the UK, this procurement of renewable electricity is having a limited impact, and in many cases, no impact at all on emissions reductions either for the company or for the country.” Bloomberg has done an excellent explainer on this complicated issue: “What Really Happens When Emissions Vanish”. Legal firm, Pinsent Masons, has said that energy suppliers are ‘wise’ to abandon use of REGO certificates over ‘greenwashing’ concerns and elsewhere there are mind-bogglingly technical discussions on all of this (e.g. here and here).
A key issue here is understanding when a club is using ‘market-based’ reporting and/or using ‘location-based’ reporting as these produce very different emissions figures. Again, the Bloomberg article explains these two approaches. As and when clubs make statements on renewable energy let’s keep a close eye on which they use. This will help provide a clearer picture of where they currently stand and the progress they are making.
Emissions reporting is a complex but important area for our understanding of what progress is being made. As ever, if anyone has any views, insights, or corrections to share on the matter, please get in touch!
Fran James (he/him)
Football and Climate Change Newsletter
footballandclimatechange@gmail.com
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