Earth Day: How Chicago's sports stadiums are going green

Sports and sustainability might not be two words that come to mind in the same sentence often, but Chicago’s teams are making strides in their environmental efforts.

The city’s iconic stadiums see millions of fans every year, and as pillars of their community, each share a sense of responsibility to set an example with fans.

Chicago Cubs

On the North Side, the Cubs have hit a home run in recycling. Over the past two years, the team has added three new waste diversion programs: compost, cardboard and IT material donation.

Inside the historic scoreboard, there are now two 50-gallon rainwater barrels, capturing 1,500 gallons of water, which is then used to irrigate the center field junipers.

The Cubs also added eleven water bottle refill stations throughout the ballpark.

“We replaced the field lights with all LEDs,” David Cromwell, the Chief Operations Officer for the Cubs told NBC Chicago. “We’re really proud of everything we’ve done in electricity to manage energy usage during peak and off-peak periods.”

The team installed sub-metering throughout its campus to better understand how and where usage is occurring.  

“We can start to understand where we have opportunities to reduce our footprint,” said Cromwell. “And working cohesively to try to implement those changes.”

Outside the ballpark, the Cubs have donated more than 6,300 pounds of audiovisual equipment to the Chicago Furniture bank, and more than 17,500 leftover ballpark food items, about 7,000 pounds, to three community services groups.

The organization has also partnered with Invenergy to be an anchor tenant in a new, community solar project.

“We hope [fans] are really excited when they come to Wrigley Field to see the steps we’ve taken and continue to take. This is still early for us, and we want to continue to make great strides to reduce our environmental footprint,” Cromwell said.

Chicago White Sox

On the South Side, the White Sox are sliding into sustainability with a full-scale expansion of the organization’s composting program at Rate Field.

Last year, the team diverted more than five tons of food waste from landfills by composting food waste in the kitchen. This season, the Sox rolled out compost bins throughout the ballpark concourses to get fans involved, too.

Also new this year, there are more than 220,000 reusable aluminum cups in concessions, as well as plant-based containers, cups and plates.

“Education and communication is one of the forward things we’re focusing on this year,” Jonathan Vasquez, the Senior Director of Park Operations for the Chicago White Sox said.

The team also retrofitted field and concourse lights to reduce electrical usage 20 percent over the past year. The Sox say they reduced water usage by 10.5 percent and diverted 196 tons of cardboard, paper, plastic and aluminum from landfills last year.

“As it started, it was an operational thing. A task,” Vasquez said. “Get that mindset out of it. Getting more involved and having people drive that. For us, as an organization, we want to do our part.”

Chicago Bears

The play calling at Halas Hall is all about stacking small wins over time to generate a big impact.

The team said the shift toward sustainability started with a desire to be more intentional as a business and member of the community with an approach rooted in habit that “accumulates impact over time.”

“Last year, we launched our composting program where we were able to take 33,000 pounds of waste, and compost it, diverting that from a landfill,” Paul Neurauter, the Senior Vice President of Operations and Sustainability for the Chicago Bears said.

In the cafeteria, the team offers reusable tableware and locally sourced food when possible. Some of the herbs and vegetables come from the rooftop garden, fertilized with 33,000 pounds of composted waste.

Staff also recycles cooking oil, which has been turned into 1,300 pounds of renewable, biodiesel fuel.

Outside, the fields are built on sand and gravel, to redirect filtered rainwater into the surrounding protected wetlands. The irrigation comes from three onsite wells, which lessens the burden on the municipal system.

"As technology and innovation continues to grow and take hold in the sustainability space, it's going to make the solutions more cost effective," Neurauter said.

Soldier Field is owned and operated by the Chicago Park District.

Last season, in partnership with Keurig Dr. Pepper, the organization launched a reusable cup pilot program in the United Club. Fans could receive nine-ounce wine, 16-ounce premium draft beer, 16-ounce soda or 20-ounce domestic draft beer cups from the concession stand and return it to a marked collection bin.

In a press release announcing the initiative, the team said it "underscores a commitment to enhancing sustainability efforts during Bears gamedays, reducing waste and promoting environmental responsibility among fans."

ASM Global manages Soldier Field, and in a statement to NBC Chicago, said it has "paved the way to maintaining the stadium’s status as one of the 'greenest' stadiums in the world. Soldier Field has practiced vigilance in reducing its carbon footprint, particularly since its reopening in 2003."

"In 2012, Soldier Field was awarded the status of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).  Soldier Field was the first existing North American stadium to receive the award of LEED-EB Certification and the first NFL stadium to receive this prestigious award," the statement read in part.

The statement goes on to say, "following the Soldier Field renovation and reopening in 2003, the implementation of many energy conservation and recycling programs were implemented along with the use of green cleaning chemicals and the reuse of materials, including aluminum can recycling, the soil removed from Soldier Field during a re-sodding being reused in landscaping, and more."

Chicago Blackhawks and Bulls

Millions of people walk through the doors of the United Center every year, and the stadium has made an effort to reduce its reliance on single-use plastic, through a partnership with Culligan.

"To do that, we created our aluminum cans, which are at every concession point," Eileen Ziesemer, the Vice President of communications and partnerships for Culligan International said.

"Every water fountain is now a refilling station for the bottles. In the suites we put in new taps that can give you filtered cold or sparkling water," Ziesemer said.

Unlike plastic, aluminum is infinitely recyclable. This year, fans can get the assist separating recyclables into new, aluminum only bins.

"We are really infusing communications around why this is so much more sustainable. People are starting to think about a better vessel, and also how they can reuse it or recycle it before they leave, or take it home and recycle it later," Ziesemer said.

"Culligan is a hometown company. It was formed and established in Chicago almost 90 years ago. It was really important we started integrating ourselves into the communities we work, live and serve."

Culligan has also partnered with the Chicago Distance Series, beginning with the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in 2024.

They installed refilling stations throughout Grant Park and offer the same reusable aluminum water bottles.

The partnership expanded in 2025 to include the Shamrock Shuffle and Half Marathon.