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Environmental Sustainability Plan

The Vision for Sport in Wales is that everyone can have a lifetime enjoyment of sport. The climate emergency poses a significant threat to realising the Vision. 

We are already seeing increases in the frequency of flooding to pitches and other playing surfaces, disrupting sporting schedules and with the potential to adversely impact participation. Periods of extreme heat and poor air quality are leading to cancelled fixtures, an exacerbation of existing health conditions and/or impaired athlete performance. The impact will be felt across the breadth of sports at both a community and high-performance level. 

Foreword

Sport Wales is wholly committed to playing our part in tackling the climate and nature emergencies and realising the Welsh Government ambition for a net zero Welsh public sector by 2030. 

Sport Wales are already taking steps by focusing on renewable energy sources, installing solar energy panels and an innovative ground source heat pump system at Plas Menai, the National Outdoor Centre for Wales.  We recognise that there is much more to do and have developed our first Environmental Sustainability Plan in partnership with the Carbon Trust, consulting with our staff and our stakeholders. 

As the national organisation responsible for developing and promoting sport and physical activity in Wales, we recognise that we have a leading role to play.  Our Plan is not only aimed at reducing our own organisational carbon footprint and contributing to enhanced biodiversity but also supporting the sector to make improvements.  We know that working with and learning from colleagues within sport will amplify the positive environmental impact and contribution to net zero far beyond our own organisational boundary. 

Our Plan is centred around five key themes: -

  • Our People
  • Our Partners
  • Our Places
  • Our Procurement
  • Our Processes

We believe that focusing our actions on these five areas will significantly reduce both our own carbon footprint and that of the wider sporting sector.  In line with our values, we will adopt a learning approach throughout the period of this Plan.  The Plan sets the direction, but we recognise the need to remain agile, responding to new and emerging technologies, ideas, and ways of working – some of which might not yet exist.  We will review and refresh the Plan throughout the period, challenging ourselves to maximise opportunities and deliver actions at pace.      

We are excited about our role in delivering net zero across the Welsh public sector by 2030 and energised by the opportunity to collaborate with partners across sport, Lottery distributors and other public sector bodies. We also want to play our part in enhancing biodiversity. Our actions now will ensure that we deliver an environment in which sport can continue to thrive for future generations. 

Brian Davies, Acting Chief Executive Officer 

Developed in partnership with Carbon Trust

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