[Beijing 2022] A Green, Low-Carbon and Sustainable Olympics
Editor's note: The translators KUANG Haoxuan and WANG Zhuoran are students of School of Foreign Languages and Literature of Beijing Normal University.
Renewables-Powered Lightings, Low-Carbon Ice Making, and Hydrogen-Fueled Transportation
Photograph ①: A hydrogen-fueled bus providing transportation for media in Zhangjiakou competition zone. February 10, 2022. Photograph: Sun Yahui/People’s Daily
Photograph ②: Temporary facilities including the Venue Media Centre on both sides of the Speed Course Finish Area of the National Alpine Ski Centre in Yanqing competition zone. Compared with permanent facilities, they are low-cost, easy to remove and open for reuse. February 10, 2022. Photograph: Wang Meihua/People’s Daily
Photograph ③: Norwegian player Therese Johaug, at the National Cross Country Centre in Zhangjiakou. Lightings are powered by wind turbine generators in Zhangbei county, Zhangjiakou. February 10, 2022. Photograph: Jiang Yushi/People’s Daily
Photograph ④: Electric heating equipment in the Venue Media Centre of the Genting Snow Park. More than 3,000 pieces of electric heating equipment have been installed on the roofs of venues in Genting, Zhangjiakou competition zone. February 10, 2022. Photograph: Sun Yahui/People’s Daily
Renewables-powered lightings, low-carbon ice making, hydrogen-fueled transportation, temporarily-constructed and reusable facilities…here in Beijing 2022, you can find a wide range of technologies, designs and practices, all for a green, low-carbon and sustainable Winter Olympics. In China, the idea of hosting a “Green Olympics” has been a social consensus.
“In our bid for the Winter Olympics, we pledged to neutralize all carbon emitted by the 2022 Games. In the past six years, we have strived to decrease carbon emissions to the minimum in areas including venues, energy, transportation and administrative work. Meanwhile, we resort to carbon offsets such as forestry carbon sequestration and corporate donations to ensure the goal of hosting a carbon-neutral Olympics,” said Li Sen, Director-General of the General Planning Department of the Beijing 2022 Organising Committee.
Environmental Protection & Ice Making
On the evening of February 10, the women’s 5,000 metres competition in speed skating took place at the National Speed Skating Oval, also known as the “Ice Ribbon”.
As the only new venue for ice sport in Beijing 2022, the “Ice Ribbon” is a powerful example of a low-carbon venue.
In the early stage of construction, the Chinese team recognized that traditional refrigerants like Freon would require a large amount of energy consumption to cover an ice surface of about 12,000 m2. After careful examination and consideration from experts, the host finally settled on carbon dioxide trans-critical direct refrigeration technology.
According to Li Jiulin, Chief Engineer and Vice General Manager of the National Speed Skating Oval Company, under the same amount, carbon emissions of traditional refrigerants are nearly 4,000 times that of the carbon dioxide refrigerant. By implementing the new ice-making technology, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced massively, while saving 2 million KWH annually.
Since the opening of Beijing 2022, the “Ice Ribbon” has witnessed consecutive Olympic-record-breaking moments. Athletes from around the world also praised the ice quality.
Besides, the same technology is also employed at venues such as the Capital Indoor Stadium and its Short Track Speed Skating Training Centre and the Wukesong Ice Hockey Training Centre.
“The ‘Ice Ribbon’ is a symbolic and iconic Winter-Olympic construction that sets up a high standard. We hope that by adopting the idea of a green and low-carbon venue, we can show to the world that China is a responsible major country,” said Li Jiulin.
In total, the 2022 Games reuses 6 venues from the 2008 Summer Olympics, competition and non-competition. For example, the National Aquatics Centre has been tailored to hold the Men’s Curling competitions. Many players said that it was hard to imagine the original swimming facility and they felt happy to play games there.
From “Water Cube” to “Ice Cube”, the creative switch between water and ice is also low-carbon. By using a convertible structure of steel beams and a removable ice-making system, a temporary ice surface is assembled in the swimming pool, forming four standard sheets for curling. In this process, both energy consumption and carbon emissions are reduced significantly.
Technology & Green Power
On February 10, before the game Freestyle Skiing Mixed Team Aerials started, as usual, groups of reporters had already gathered in the Venue Media Centre of the Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou. Even though the temperature outside was close to -10℃ (14℉), it was quite warm in the media centre. For a while, people here seemed to forget about the coldness outdoors.
Above on the ceiling, black-colored electric heating equipment was emitting bursts of warm air – more than 3,000 pieces of warmers throughout the venue is the key source of the spring-like warmth.
Ninety percent of the functions in the Genting venues rely on temporary buildings, most of which are box-type rooms. Although the wall panels already contain insulation layers, in order to achieve green heating, the venues have also installed on the roof electric heating equipment with new aerospace materials and technology, capable of achieving a heat conversion rate of over 97%.
Lying against the mountains, the “Snow Ruyi” (National Ski Jumping Centre) shows a beautiful and dynamic appearance with the snow-filled forest and field as the background. And the tracks here not only have a traditional Chinese style, but also reflect the green concept.
The construction of the track implements the Evaluation Standard for Green Snow Sports Venue (three-star), using new technologies such as wind power, natural lighting, external sunshade design, and water purification with breathable seepage-proofing materials.
Meanwhile, the melted snow is also used to recreate snow through techniques of surface water collection.
If you take the high-speed train all the way north from Beijing, the wind turbines outside your window will surely catch your attention – Beijing Winter Olympics takes 100% green power, most of which are generated in Zhangjiakou.
“Zhangjiakou has an abundant exploitable wind energy reserve of more than 40 million kilowatts; the reserve of solar energy here is also very rich, amounting to more than 30 million kilowatts,” said Li Sen.
Zhangjiakou’s green power is directly delivered to Beijing and Yanqing competition zones through Zhang-Bei Flexible HVDC Network, which guarantees the “green operation” of the Winter Olympic venues.
Low-Carbon Initiative & Social Consensus
“Everywhere in the Yanqing competition zone is practising low-carbon initiative and energy conservation. The concept of ‘Green Olympics’ is rooted in our minds.” said Jiang Wanjie, Sustainability Manager of the Yanqing Venues for Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
“Throughout the whole process from planning, design, construction, operation and management to post-race utilization in the Yanqing competition zone, we have implemented the concept of sustainable development, and strived to achieve a harmonious coexistence of human and nature.” Jiang said, “We have posted a lot of energy-saving tips in the venues, and we turn off the lights, save water and electricity as usual practice. During the daily inspection, the lights of the sunny-side office area will be turned off at 10 a.m.”
The temperature of the venues’ air conditioners is set within a reasonable range; the restaurant garbage is sorted; disused cartons are disinfected and reused as garbage bins; the lighting in the corridor is kept on only half when it is well lit... In the Yanqing zone, there are countless environmentally friendly details like these.
Jiang added, in order to reduce the venues’ permanently occupied area of forest land, many facilities including spectator areas, extended family lounges, media workrooms are temporary, “compared with permanent facilities, they are low-cost, easy to remove and open for reuse.”
As the venue was built with local materials, many stones became by-products. How are they dealing with these stones? Jiang revealed the answer – reusing the waste stones to decorate the outer walls of the buildings and build berms and drains. According to statistics, the amount of waste stones used is over 310,000 m2.
The post-race utilization of the Yanqing competition zone is also a highlight. During the snow season, it can host top international events and also provide a place for amateur skiers to experience outdoor sports; while in the spring, summer and autumn, with its beautiful scenery and fresh air, it is a great place for leisure and vacation, allowing people to carry out outdoor fitness activities such as mountaineering and hiking.
“Our goal is to achieve four-season operation of the Yanqing competition zone, thus maximizing the post-Olympic utilization of the venues,” Jiang said.
Source: People’s Daily (Overseas edition) (February 11, 2022, p. 06)
