Making sport operations and activities environmentally-friendly is possible, underlined the director of a French observatory for sport and sustainable development in an interview with EurActiv.

Sustainable development is the answer to sports-related global problems, said Nathalie Durand, director-general of the French Observatory of Sport and Sustainable Development (OSDD).

The problems to be addressed include air pollution affecting athletes’ health, greenhouse gas emissions generated by sports equipment and water used by swimming pools and golf courses amid current fears of water scarcity, she explained.

According to Durand, irresponsible economic practices and intensive production of sports equipment should also be considered.

She described sport as an actor in territorial development, with environmental, social and economic impacts. It also affects competition for land, consumption of goods and foods, and waste, transport and CO2, she said. Durand believes in furthering cooperation between all actors.

Making sport sustainable requires global consideration of the impact of sports infrastructure, equipment, events, clubs and related transport, Durand underlined, adding that OSDD had developed the idea of life-cycle assessment (LCA) for sporting activities as well as an accompanying means of evaluating progress.

The full article can be found at http://www.euractiv.com/en/sports/eu-sport-sustainable/article-182872