Indycar and IMS set forth an environmental initiative last weekend. The plan is bold and there area lot of admirable things in it. many oft he initiatives involve behind the scenes steps the series and tracks are taking. Firestone tires will arrive at venues in electric vehicles. Team transporters will will renewable diesel. A new tire which will eventually replace the current alternate tire, made from a more renewable plant than rubber, will debut at the Indianapolis 500 pit stop competition and have its race debut at Nashville, the home of Bridgestone.

IMS has already switched to LED lighting and has taken steps to reduce water usage. Food concessions will donate extra food to Gleaners’ Food Bank and serve food in recyclable containers.

The speedway will also offer fans to buy carbon offsets and will also buy offsets to reduce its carbon footprint.

The plan is bold, but what will the fans see? How effective will these steps be? What wasn’t mentioned and should have been? I think there should be more tangible environmental effort

I am not sure how carbon offsets work, but from what I read, the money mainly goes to long term projects like reforestation. A person uses carbon for an activity, and buys into a project to replace trees. This is a very long term replenishment. I would rather see something with a more immediate effect. I have nothing against offsets, but they really don’t immediately replace the current consumprion.

Mark Miles said that recycling containers would be more visible at the speedway. It’s about time. The past few years they have been hard to find. I mostly saw the blue receptacles near the F1 garages on the south end. When I attended the Toronto race, the organizers had sets of three waste containers as unit generously scattered throughout the track area. One was for trash, one for recyclables, and a third for compost material. Food was served in mostly biodegradable containers.

Miles also mentioned the Bike to the 500 program. It is a nice idea for those ho are able to do this. Nothing was said about reestablishing the buses from the airport or downtown. Mass transportation in alternative fueled vehicles might be the most effective step the track could take. Reducing the number of cars at the speedway and surrounding area. would help a lot.

IMS is putting in an electric charging station for the tire delivery trucks. Why not put in a few for people who have electric vehicles and drive them to the track? There are speedway-owned lots outside the track which would be a good spot for these units.

Hosting an event with close to a half million people and vehicles in a concentrated area makes a large carbon footprint no matter what steps are taken. Indycar and IMS have taken a few steps to reduce the environmental impact. I hope they are planning to add more measures over time.