Khalifa International Stadium wins top sustainability award

TheKhalifa International Stadium – the first completed tournament venuefor the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar – has received a major sustainabilitycertification, fifa.com reported yesterday. The 40,000-capacitystadium has become the first in the world to be awarded a four-starrating from the Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS), which isadministered by Qatar-based Gulf Organisation for Research &Development (Gord). Qatar’s national stadium, which officiallyreopened in May of this year, underwent extensive redevelopment that wasoverseen by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC),Qatar’s 2022 World Cup organising body, and the Aspire Zone Foundation.The official four-star certification follows a provisional awardannounced in June 2016.  Fitted with innovative and energy-efficientcooling technology, the Khalifa International Stadium received therating during the second annual Sustainability Summit in Doha, which wasorganised by Gord and sponsored by the SC. “We are very proud toreceive the four-star certification – this is a major achievement forQatar, the SC and Aspire Zone Foundation, as we strive to meet ourambitious sustainability targets in the lead-up to 2022 and beyond,”said Bodour al-Meer, the SC’s Sustainability & EnvironmentalManager. In order to obtain GSAS certification, developers mustemploy leading sustainability practices in the design, construction andoperation to minimise a building’s ecological footprint. KhalifaInternational Stadium’s cooling technology uses an energy recoverysystem in order to reduce energy consumption. In addition, the stadiumfeatures energy-efficient lighting systems and plumbing fixtures. FIFA’sHead of Sustainability & Diversity, Federico Addiechi, praisedQatar’s commitment to sustainability. “It’s great to see that Qatar’sfirst stadium has successfully received certification so far in advanceof the tournament,” said Addiechi. “Also, the fact that such asophisticated certification system exists and is being widely used inQatar is very promising. “Stadiums are at the heart of a FIFA World Cup,making them the focus for the sustainable management of the event.”