LOCOG has placed a great deal of emphasis on the diversity of the workforce, volunteers and their supply chain. Their aim to have 6-10% of these workforces made up of disabled people was well on track to be achieved when we checked before the Games and I am confident that the final analysis will show this to be a success. It was great to hear Terry’s story, how he was trained and supported by LOCOG and how inspiring he found his role as a Games Maker. He said that he couldn’t wait for the Paralympics to start and was heading off after the radio show was recorded to begin his first shift.

Robert’s experience was a little more mixed. He said he was enthusiastic about the Games but found facilities for visually impaired people confusing. When he asked for an audio headset he was bought a hearing loop on more than one occasion, which is for deaf people. His huge German Shepherd guide dog should have provided a clue here. Peter’s advice was to take a radio and follow the action on Radio 5. Although Radio 5 is excellent, it does not necessarily cover the sport you are watching. We all agreed that Games Makers are great and that they can’t be expected to know everything. However, the information should be available for them to find out. Our own visually impaired Commissioner, Andy Shipley, called the London 2012 customer helpline to enquire about this. After waiting 10 minutes he was told that audio descriptions are available at all venues and he should ask any Games Maker for help. This does not accord with Robert’s experience.

We talked about legacy too. The Olympic Park will clearly be a great place for disabled people to visit in legacy and possibly to live and work, but will the great work done by the ODA and LOCOG be replicated for other projects and other events? I hope so.

The ODA did a great job of creating an accessible built environment by engaging directly with disabled people, and LOCOG should be congratulated for their work in encouraging disabled people to get involved with the Games. There are clearly some operational improvements needed for the Paralympics though and it is not too late to act on Robert’s feedback.

During the warm up to the show we talked about guide dogs. Terry’s Labrador had tried to steal somebody’s sandwich while visiting the BBC. Robert’s German Shepherd does not steal food. It reminded me of a story Andy told me about his now retired dog Gabby sneaking across a train carriage to nick somebody’s Cornish Pasty. Gabby was particularly keen on raiding the buffet trolley at our Commission meetings too. This prompted Peter to suggest they should do a programme about the food guide dogs steal, which was instantly rejected by his producer… but producers, what do they know…..?

Shaun McCarthy

August 2012

LOCOG’s spectacular success in delivering a low carbon Olympic cauldron set the scene. London 2012 has demonstrated that it is possible to deliver a wonderful variety of sustainably sourced, competitively priced food and aim to dispose of the packaging with recycling and composting performance that should put the rest of the event industry to shame. Green spaces were well looked after. This was billed as the Games for everybody and ample access for people of all abilities was provided. It was great to see families, older people and disabled people enjoying the party too.

Unfortunately LOCOG’s energy conservation plan was developed too late to engage venue managers effectively and despite great efforts of the team on the ground it could have been so much better. The decision not to allow people to bring their own food into the Live Sites in Hyde Park and Victoria Park combined with inferior and expensive catering undermined the principle of “everybody’s Games”. The “no idling” message simply did not get through to bus drivers. Every transport hub we visited we saw stationary vehicles with engines running; polluting the environment, damaging health and haemorrhaging cash. It was a similar picture with many lights left on in broad daylight.

As I have observed over the course of these Games, I have been delighted to watch the new found popularity of East London as visitors have flocked to watch the sport and stayed to shop, socialise and experience the area. Whilst by contrast the West End has reportedly been adversely affected, I’m confident this part of London will bounce back and the important point is that we’re seeing encouraging signs that a sustainable legacy for the East is on its way.

The tremendous success of Team GB at these Games will not be enough to generate a step change for the rest of the nation in terms of health. An increase in sports participation is likely to be short lived and it will take investment in community and school sport and a clear plan to tackle the current obesity crisis.

London 2012 has set high standards but sustainability is not a fixed concept; other host cities need to make their own interpretation. However there are some global issues that must be tackled. The issue of aligning the Olympic values to consistent and improving ethical behaviour by sponsors cannot be ignored and constructive engagement will be necessary in future to improve this situation. Despite the best efforts of LOCOG it has not been possible to entirely eliminate abuses of workers’ rights in the supply chain. This issue goes beyond audits and requires engagement with factory owners, trade unions and the workers themselves. There is an opportunity to build on the good work done by LOCOG to ensure that the heirs to Wenlock and Mandeville are made in conditions where the workers are treated with the respect they deserve.

In the main, London’s sustainable Games have been a massive success but like the best sports teams there is a need to continuously improve. I wish the IOC and future host cities success in proving they can do better.

Now bring on the Paralympics.

Shaun McCarthy

August 2012

The first impression of the experience is high security, we had 3 separate ID checks to get into the Village and for specific buildings. Nigel is the director responsible for the Village and many other aspects of the Games, his pass did not have the correct date so he was refused entry until the error had been corrected. I appreciate that a large amount of additional security is necessary to ensure the Games are safe but our Commissioners have expressed concern that  additional scrutiny may continue in wider society after the Games and infringe the civil liberties of the most watched nation on earth. There has to be a balance after the Games.

The Village is the first to be located within walking distance of the main competition venues and the excellent public transport links to central London will provide a great experience for athletes of the 208 nations who will descend on us in less than 100 days. The facilities are first class, each of the apartment blocks has a green courtyard and there is high quality green space to give the Village an open, refreshing feel. We noted, however, that one area of green space is allocated for a high rise development in legacy which will detract from the ambience of the development and restrict light for residents.

A great deal of thought has been given to legacy. The operations centre will become a school and the sports fields for athletes’ entertainment will be part of the school experience. The Polyclinic will remain as a medical facility for the new residents and the ground floor will be developed with retail facilities to create a new piece of city.

This is the first major development to comply with Code for Sustainable Homes Level 4. I wondered “what would a Code 4 development feel like?”  The answer was; very little different to any other modern apartment block. The accommodation is of high quality with high levels of insulation, there are plenty of doors opening on to the balconies to provide ventilation in summer, lighting is by LEDs not bulbs but unless you are an energy geek you probably would not know the difference, neither would you know that the heating is supplied by a district heating system connected to CCHP. The only noticeable difference was the heating control system which our energy expert thought looked a little complicated, which is worrying – the systems must be useable to be effective. The future school is a great building with abundant natural light, but the transparent roof was a little noisy when the English weather did its best to disrupt our visit.

The Village has demonstrated that it is possible to live in comfortable, modern accommodation and be more sustainable. We don’t have to go back to living in caves or build houses made of straw. For London 2012 to establish this milestone for sustainable living is a major achievement to be celebrated.

Shaun McCarthy

April 2012  

The early evening event, well organised by the ODA, was very different. 1,600 guests were invited to celebrate one year to go with the first dive into the pool by Tom Daley and a unique swimming race featuring medal winning athletes, but most of them not for swimming. All I can say about that is that as a swimmer, Tessa Sanderson throws a mean javelin. From a sustainability standpoint it was mixed. The audience was very inclusive, lots of local school kids and local residents who responded to advertising in the local media. All races, colours and abilities seemed to be there and very few white blokes in suits (like me). However I was disappointed to see naff plastic flags on every seat which served no useful purpose at all and just littered the venue after the event. I have no idea what they were made of, where they were made and where they will go when somebody has swept them off the floor. Our commissioner Neil Taylor took a load home for his kids so I suppose that is re-use of a sort. The food was healthy and fresh (and free), served on cardboard platters with wooden forks. However there was far too much and much was wasted. I was not impressed with what I saw of the waste management either, all waste in one bin with no evidence of segregation. All lessons to be learned for The Big One next year.

A final word for the Aquatic Centre. We have been very rude about this building and have been unstinting in our criticism of its relative lack of sustainability. I still think 3,000 tonnes is too much metal to put a roof over a swimming pool but the building is stunning inside. The atmosphere created by 17,000 spectators will be an inspiration. However, I still prefer the velodrome!

Shaun McCarthy

July 2011

One of my roles in the Commission is to track all the commitments that the delivery bodies have made to ensure they are progressing against them. This has meant I have been able to see how all the venues have developed throughout their design and build. The velodrome has consistently stood out as its innovative design has helped it meet or exceed all the targets set for it.

For example, the ODA required all the venues to be at least 15 percent more energy efficient than standard venues. The velodrome is over 30 percent more efficient, doubling the target set. Its rainwater harvesting system means it also nearly doubles the 40 per cent target for reduction in potable water use. I was also pleased to see the sustainably sourced timber track that Sir Chris Hoy, Victoria Pendleton and other members of Team GB were cycling round today.

The velodrome is also a great example of carbon efficient design. Using a lightweight structure with a timber clad cable net roof, the steel required for the roof is only 100 tonnes. This gives it a much lower carbon footprint than a traditional venue.

I believe the velodrome also shows that you can have a stunning design and a highly sustainable venue. Something another similar sized building to the south of it could learn from?

I hope that as we come to the Games and hopefully see many British gold medals won at the velodrome, we can also celebrate and replicate the great sustainability lessons from this amazing venue.

Jonathan Turner

22 February 2011

Like a bat out of hell it was gone when the morning comes. On 3 June 2010, the ODA announced the cancellation of their proposed wind turbine for the Olympic Park. With it came a little media storm with headlines such as “what hope now for the Green Games?” and “Olympic chiefs scrap wind power plan”. The first question I was asked by one journalist was “What other environmental targets are the ODA going to ditch?” Words like “scrap”, “ditch” and “abandon” appeared in most headlines.

The fact is, the ODA are ditching nothing and we expect them to honour the commitment they made to deliver 50% carbon reduction and 20% energy from renewable sources. In the face of increasing challenges with wind power, they have now chosen to deliver their 20% renewable energy commitment using biomass Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system and other renewables, not a wind turbine.

Biomass is the ugly duckling to the wind turbine’s beautiful swan. Whether you like them or not, wind turbines take a great picture against a background of a crisp blue sky, a spectacular sunset, or even a thunderstorm. They look good in PowerPoint presentations, on websites or in glossy CSR reports. A biomass CHP is a collection of unattractive machines hidden away in an unglamorous plant room.

The problem with wind turbines is that they don’t go round when it is not windy and if you put one in a place that is not very windy it will not generate the amount of electricity you need. You will only know this after you have collected extensive wind data over a number of years. There were also health and safety issues to deal with such as new regulations requiring exclusion zones around wind turbines.

This was the dilemma facing the ODA and they have made a good decision based on the information they have. The decision cannot be delayed any longer because equipment needs to be ordered and construction needs to start very soon.

Wind turbines are easy for people to understand. CHP based on biomass sounds like a complex dish to serve up to the public. This technology is not new. It has been in use in Scandinavia and other countries for more than 30 years.

The Commission will expect to see the detailed plans for the solution now favoured by the ODA. But from what I have heard to date, I am confident that this is being done in a professional manner. We will continue to hold the ODA to account to deliver on this important commitment.

What do you think?