SOCHI, Russia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games is the first Games in history to mitigate the entire direct carbon footprint of its Organizing Committee prior to the Opening Ceremony. Sochi 2014 officially announced today that over 520,000 metric tons (MT) of CO2 equivalents have already been mitigated through the “Sustainable Future” program, implemented in Russia by Worldwide Olympic Partner and Official Carbon Partner of Sochi 2014, The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW).
Since March 2013, Dow has been working with its customers in Russia to implement energy efficient and low-carbon technologies in the areas of infrastructure, industry and agriculture within different regions of the country. The greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions delivered to date by the groundbreaking “Sustainable Future” program have been verified by 3rd party international experts ERM, who confirmed that results far exceeded the footprint of 360,000 MT of CO2 equivalents – the estimated direct carbon footprint of the Games. This footprint includes emissions associated with the travel and accommodation of athletes, staff, and volunteers, the operation of the sports venues during Games time, and the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee’s activities from 2007 (when Russia received the right to host the 2014 Olympic Winter Games) until the Paralympic Games’ Closing Ceremony, on March 17, 2014.
Sochi 2014 is also the first Olympic and Paralympic Games with a neutral carbon footprint associated with the travel of spectators and media attending the event. This footprint was estimated to be 160,000 MT of CO2 equivalents. Dow worked with international experts Offsetters to offset the travel footprint prior to the Opening Ceremony by retiring carbon credits from a portfolio of high-quality projects developed to international standards, and recognized under the International Carbon Offset and Reduction Alliance (ICROA) Code of Practice. Embracing the global spirit of the Olympics, this portfolio includes projects from Russia, Brazil and South Korea – Host Territories of the next three Olympic Games – in addition to a project implemented by Dow at one of its manufacturing facilities in the United States.
“It is with great pride and excitement that we announce today the fulfillment of a key milestone on our commitment to deliver Games with minimal impact on climate,” said Dmitry Chernyshenko, president and CEO of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee. “The ‘Sustainable Future’ program went above and beyond our expectations, as it reached our mitigation goals in such a short time. The program is also contributing to promote technological advancements and delivering long lasting benefits to the Russian economy.”
“Dow is a global leader in the chemical industry and a renowned innovator, providing us with sustainable solutions to improve venues and city infrastructure,” said Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). “As the Official Chemistry Company of the Olympic Games, Dow will continue to play a significant role in supporting the IOC’s long term vision for sustainability at the Olympic Games.”
Tailor-made program with solid results
Selected by the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee and the IOC to be the Official Carbon Partner of this year’s Olympic Winter Games, Dow stepped up to the challenge by working closely with the organizers, renowned international experts and Russian companies to identify and assess opportunities to deliver substantial greenhouse gas emissions reductions and technology enhancements in key areas of the Russian economy.
After a thorough evaluation, Dow implemented the “Sustainable Future” program with projects targeted at air sealing solutions for buildings to enhance energy efficiency, technologies to enhance energy efficiency of industrial processes, low-weight and high-strength materials for structural integrity and durability of civil infrastructure, and a holistic project to increase crop yield and engage local producers on how to reduce emissions and conserve energy in agricultural and farming practices.
In order to support this new approach to carbon mitigation enabled by the “Sustainable Future” program, Dow partnered with Offsetters and other international experts to develop an innovative GHG accounting framework enabling economically viable projects to deliver climate benefits for the footprint mitigation of a large-scale event. Dow’s Climate Solutions Framework was launched at the United Nations’ COP 19/CMP 9 event in Warsaw, Poland, in November 2013, with broad recognition from private and public sector players from around the world.
“The Worldwide Olympic Partnership allows Dow to showcase its solutions on the world’s most revered global sports stage,” said George Hamilton, vice president, Dow Olympic Operations. “As the Official Chemistry Company of the Olympic Games, we evaluated what the needs are for the Olympic Movement and the role Dow could play in helping to make the Games better by our participation. Our capabilities and expertise make us a key player to advance the 3rd pillar of the Olympism – the environment – and this is how we have been working with Organizing Committees and the IOC to deliver game-changing innovations for the Olympic Games moving forward.”
About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) combines the power of science and technology to passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The Company is driving innovations that extract value from the intersection of chemical, physical and biological sciences to help address many of the world's most challenging problems such as the need for clean water, clean energy generation and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity. Dow's integrated, market-driven, industry-leading portfolio of specialty chemical, advanced materials, agrosciences and plastics businesses delivers a broad range of technology-based products and solutions to customers in approximately 180 countries and in high growth sectors such as packaging, electronics, water, coatings and agriculture. In 2013, Dow had annual sales of more than $57 billion and employed approximately 53,000 people worldwide. The Company's more than 6,000 products are manufactured at 201 sites in 36 countries across the globe. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at www.dow.com.
