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Rotherham United 2022

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Policy and Commitment

  • Is an EFL Green Clubs member.
  • An environmental policy is currently being worked on and net zero targets are to be assessed. Once net zero targets have been agreed, these will be included within the policy.

Clean/Renewable Energy

  • The club is to review energy sources as part of the wider policy review.

Energy Efficiency

  • The club is to review energy efficiency efforts alongside the wider policy review.

Sustainable Transport

  • Public transport (bus and train travel) to the AESSEAL New York Stadium is advocated on the Club’s website.
  • Two electric vehicle (EV) chargers have been installed at the AESSEAL New York Stadium. The EV chargers are available for club staff to power their company vehicles.
  • The club is looking at installing additional EV charging points at the stadium.
  • The Rotherham United Community Sports Trust team hold walks to encourage greener travel to games. The walks give fans a chance to meet other fans and reduce the amount of CO2 produced by driving to the match.
  • Launched a short survey in April 2018 to understand how its supporters travelled to the AESSEAL New York Stadium. The survey also covered the types of initiatives that would encourage supporters to leave the car at home and use more healthy, sustainable travel options when attending games.
  • On a game-by-game basis, the club has advised Sport Positive that it can pull statistics from its ticketing office and pre-match briefings, to establish a breakdown of transport modes that fans use when travelling to the stadium.

Single Use Plastic Reduction/Removal

  • The club uses paper alternatives for straws, wooden forks and cardboard boxes for food containers.
  • Alongside its food & beverage partner, the club is looking into reusable cup options.

Waste Management

  • General plastics, cardboard and food waste from the stadium is recycled.
  • Recycling bins have been placed in stands at the stadium.
  • Food waste within levels 1 and 2 of corporate hospitality is placed into bags and is then recycled.
  • The club is looking into options to see if food waste can eventually be converted into energy.

Water Efficiency

  • The club is exploring the possibility of a borehole, new systems for urinals and whether it can collect rainwater to be reused on the pitch.

Plant based/low carbon food

  • There are vegan food options available on the stadium concourses, full vegan and vegetarian food menus in hospitality, whilst staff have access to vegan food options from the staff restaurant.
  • The club now has a first team chef where vegan food options are offered to players.
  • Stadium concourses also offer vegetarian options including a veggie burger, fruit (apple, orange or banana) and a cheese & onion pie.

Biodiversity

  • Rotherham United Community Sports Trust has planted over 40 trees and shrubs in communal areas around the stadium and centre.
  • There is a plan in place later this year to unearth dead trees and replace them with 10 new trees in the same area, located near the River Don.
  • There are no biodiversity initiatives in place at the training ground. The club has advised that ownership of the training ground is under a separate company.

Education

  • No information found

Communication and Engagement

  • Rotherham United Community Sports Trust participated in Planet League’s ‘Planet League Cup’ competition. The Trust encouraged young people and schools to get involved in sustainable activities.
  • The Community Sports Trust will be implementing sustainability through its capability policy. Whilst the policy is not fully complete, the club has advised that the Community Sports Trust promotes the policy to students on enrolment and through ongoing promotional information. Examples of this includes; asking students to use greener modes of transport and to encourage cycling and walking to the stadium for lessons and programmes. The club has advised that the capability policy will be in place within the next 12 months as there is a 2 year completion date for this.
  • The topic of recycling is promoted in two of every three matchday programmes at home. The aim is to raise awareness of the importance of recycling as well as the location of recycling bins around the stadium.
  • The club teamed up with Smart Energy GB and EFL’s ‘Save Like a Pro’ campaign. An amateur goalkeeper was taken through goalkeeping drills on how to save energy on the pitch, whilst also learning how a smart meter can help save energy off the pitch.
  • In December 2020, The Rotherham United Community Sports Trust (RUCST) launched a plastic bottle collection initiative in partnership with KCM Waste Management and MGB/Straight. The project involved the collection of all single-use plastic drinks bottles from the pitch-side and the changing rooms on all match days at the New York Stadium. MGB/Straight provided the recycling bins and KCM Waste Management offered a place to dispose the plastic bottles in the eco-friendliest way.
  • The project occurred alongside a RUCST clean up the community social action project, where local young people collected and recycled plastic bottles from the streets of Rotherham.
  • Between December 2020 and April 2021, The RUCST plastic bottle collection initiative had collected and recycled 1200 bottles.

Additional information

Information sourced directly from Rotherham United F.C staff, website and third party websites
Information updated 07 March, 2023.