Month: March 2025

The St. Louis Cardinals are one of the oldest and most successful Major League Baseball teams in the nation, playing their home games at Busch Stadium, right in the heart of the downtown St. Louis. In addition to chasing World Series championships on the field, the Cardinals earned Champion Level recognition in the 2024 St. Louis Green Business Challenge, which they’ve been an active participant in all 15 years of the Challenge. Just in time for Opening Day, the Clean Air Partnership is pleased to spotlight the Cardinals’ ongoing commitment to promoting environmental stewardship and sustainability in the region.

“Year after year, the St. Louis Green Business Challenge adds value to commitments the Cardinals make to sustainable achievement,” said Mairead Scanlon, supervisor of facility and logistics for the Cardinals. “The Challenge encourages us to think creatively about how we can further our sustainable practices and serves as a reminder about the importance of maintaining the programs we have already implemented.”

In 2024, the Cardinals launched several green initiatives to reduce excess waste. Alongside concessionaire Delaware North, the Cardinals partnered with Operation Food Search (OFS) to regularly give back to feed the less fortunate, donating 10.4 tons of food last year alone. To conserve energy in Busch Stadium’s all-inclusive areas, LED lights were also installed in the newly debuted Budweiser 703 Club. This is an important eco-friendly upgrade as LED lights contribute to better air quality by reducing energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions, minimizing light pollution, and eliminating the use of harmful chemicals found in traditional lighting. Additionally, more than 1.4 tons of e-Waste were recycled throughout the stadium to further reduce environmental impact.

On top of that, the Cardinals implemented new and improved sustainability measures such as collecting ink and toner cartridges used in the offices and recycling them through Kyocera’s ECO footPRINT Toner Recycling Program. Recycling cartridges is an effective way to reduce airborne pollutants by preventing the release of hazardous materials into landfills and cuts down the need for manufacturing new cartridges, which consumes resources and energy.

During the Challenge, efforts were also taken to grow the Cardinals Green Team, which is made up of volunteers who collect recyclables during games to divert waste from local landfills. Volunteer retention was promoted through a new incentive program – based on the number of games individuals worked – that offered promotional items, Cardinals tickets and invitations to volunteer for concerts. Likewise, the organization spearheaded another Green Team recruitment initiative with in-game tabling in Ford Plaza throughout the season to help boost volunteer enrollment in the program.

For more information on the St. Louis Cardinals and how your company can get involved in the Green Business Challenge, subscribe to their bi-monthly E-Newsletter or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. For more on the link between sustainability and air quality, explore our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

St. Louis CITY SC kicked off its inaugural Major League Soccer season just two years ago and has since been scoring points not only on the field, but also within the local community. With a commitment to green efforts in and around the stadium district by recycling, composting, food rescue and practicing energy conservation, the team partners with various educational, business and community organizations to enhance and implement shared goals of environmental sustainability. As a participant in the 2024 St. Louis Green Business Challenge, St. Louis CITY SC captured the Clean Air Partnership’s attention with its internal green practices that helped earn them recognition at the Champion Level.

Over the course of the Challenge, St. Louis CITY SC elected to report on its Champion Innovation Project “Goal: ZERO,” which was designed to reduce landfill waste and single-use plastics throughout the stadium with an emphasis on composting and recycling. For the 2024 MLS season, Energizer Park (formerly CITYPARK) diverted an impressive 90.3 percent of waste – 92 tons of material – from local landfills over 21 home matches. Of the overall waste generated, 48 percent was comprised of compost materials, 24 percent was considered mixed recycling, and another 20 percent was recycled aluminum.

“Driven by our club’s vision to be an Exceptional Club and Neighbor, we set an ambitious sustainability target of ‘Goal: ZERO’ this year, to run-waste-free MLS matches by diverting towards composting, recycling, and reuse,” said Diego Gigliani, president and general manager of St. Louis CITY SC. “By delivering on this pledge, we have both led the way for sustainable sporting events across our industry and inspired our fan and community to do their part in their homes, workplaces, and schools.”

During the Challenge year, St. Louis CITY SC worked with its Official Sustainability Partner YETI to establish a first-of-its-kind policy in MLS and across professional sports, allowing fans to bring a previously purchased CITY-branded YETI 24 oz. rambler into the stadium for unlimited soft drink and water refills to help reduce the use of single-use aluminum cups. Additional concessions-based, eco-friendly initiatives included serving food in compostable containers with compostable utensils, in addition to serving all drinks in recyclable aluminum cans, bottles and cups.

Other notable recognitions included the soccer stadium receiving a Play to Zero Award from the Green Sports Alliance for its Goal: ZERO program. The honor celebrates innovations in sustainability and highlights achievements across different categories such as Waste Player, Energy Champion and Innovation Award. Moreover, St. Louis CITY SC produced a promotional video with active players to educate fans on how the stadium sorts all trash by hand, ensuring diversion to compost and recycling instead of landfill disposal, which is also a big win for regional air quality!

For more information about St. Louis CITY SC and how your organization can get involved in the Green Business Challenge, subscribe to their bi-monthly E-Newsletter or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. For more on the link between sustainability and air quality, explore our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

The American Lung Association’s popular “Fight For Air Climb” event designed for every type of climber – from beginners to competitive climbers, along with first responders and firefighters – is set to make its return to the Metropolitan Square Building in downtown St. Louis this weekend. On Saturday morning at 8 a.m., climbers will see the world from a whole different perspective as they tackle the best set of stairs this side of the Mississippi, scaling the building’s 42 floors to race up 900+ steps (or taking it at their own pace) to support people with lung disease who are fighting for every breath.

The goal of the event is to raise awareness and funds to support the American Lung Association’s efforts to save lives through education, advocacy and research. Registration fees and fundraising dollars go toward making the nonprofit’s work possible to defeat lung cancer, improve the air we breathe, reduce the burden of lung disease on individuals and their families and more. Today, that fight is more important than ever, and 90 cents of every dollar raised will go directly to the cause. Participants can register online through Friday or in-person on the morning of the event to climb as a team, an individual, or join as a volunteer.

When climbers get to the top, they can experience what it feels like to suffer from lung disease and empathize with individuals who suffer through it every day. According to the American Lung Association’s most recent “State of Lung Cancer” report, about every two minutes, someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with lung cancer, and every day, lung cancer takes the lives of more than 361 of our friends, neighbors and loved ones. Missouri ranks 44^th among all U.S. states for new lung cancer case rates at 67.7 (per 100,000 population), which is significantly higher than the national rate of 53.6.

During Saturday’s event, climbers can also show their appreciation for local firefighters and first responders rallying to bring home a coveted Challenge award for full-gear, modified-gear and no-gear categories for teams and individuals. ALA’s mission hits close to these everyday heroes due to their increased susceptibility to lung disease as unhealthy air is an occupational hazard. In the line of duty, exposure to harmful gases, chemicals, particulate and other substances create a greater risk for potentially damaging short and long-term effects on the respiratory system.

Additionally, for those looking for a different type of challenge but still wanting to make an impact, “Climb Your Way” is the perfect alternative adventure. Participants can choose a personal challenge for themselves and their team or for a solo climb, whether that be climbing the stairs in their house, running outside in a nearby park or hiking their favorite trail. Some tools to help include the free Climb app where individuals can track activity and steps, in addition to access fundraising information and connecting with friends, family and colleagues about the climb.

For more information on the Fight For Air Climb – St. Louis and how to get involved, click here. To learn more about the health effects of exposure to polluted air and tips to reduce emissions to help protect lung health, visit the Clean Air Partnership’s website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.