Lions’ 68th Thanksgiving Day Game to Become First 100% Carbon Neutral Game

Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL

Ford Field is set to become the first NFL stadium to hold a 100% carbon neutral game on Thursday, November 22 when Ford Field and the Detroit Lions offset GHG (Green house gas) and CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions for the Lions 68th Thanksgiving Day game.

Every organization contributes to carbon dioxide emissions through its everyday operations, and Ford Field will take a positive position to offset 100% of its Carbon Footprint with the assistance of Carbon Credit Environmental Services (CCES) of Detroit getcarboncreditco2.com.

Ford Field’s carbon neutral event will offset 1,866,000 pounds of GHG/CO2 emission in one day, including:

• Removing CO2 emissions from 28,260 cars for one day travel to the event.
• Removing CO2 emissions from one 747 jet of fans for the one day event.
• Removing CO2 emissions from 255,675 KWh of electricity usage form the Ford Field event.
• Reducing a total of 933/tons of GHG, CO2 emissions for the one-day event.

The calculations for this event included all of the CO2 emissions for the energy usage from electricity, gas and water used at Ford Field, along with the emissions emitted from the travel of the fans (automotive, air) and the opposing team.

CCES has planted 150,000 trees as a carbon sink. This means that each tree planted will absorb the GHG, CO2 emissions and clean the air in our global environment. Other programs of CCES include solar power, wind energy and methane recovery. Ford Field is part of the future and greening of our planet globally.

Individuals can become part of the goal to reduce global warming through these simple tips:

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with energy – efficient one’s
• Unplug chargers (cell phones, blackberries, ipods, etc.)
• Turn off lights/TV when not in use
• Shut down your computer completely
• Take public transportation
• Ride a bike
• Drive a hybrid
• Use biodegradable disposable plates, cups, forks, spoons
• Purchase carbon offsets (getcarboncreditco2.com)

While the changes Ford Field is making are ambitious and groundbreaking, the sports industry is beginning to get behind this issue. There are still considerable obstacles to overcome, whether it’s encouraging investments in greener television production technologies or simply forcing ourselves and our partners to think GREEN and do things differently, Ford Field has started the initiative and is a leader in this endeavor and has created the perfect place for the rest of us to start.