Charlotte’s zero-waste playbook: Inside the stadium’s sustainability strategy

Picture yourself inside the Charlotte 49ers’ Jerry Richardson Stadium. In addition to taking in the sights and sounds of college football, you grab some food and a drink from the concession stands. You enjoy both, and on the way back to your seat, you toss the trash — perhaps never thinking about it again.

That moment is just one part of the zero-waste process — a program in place since 2013 and one that Charlotte executes better than most college stadiums.

While the name “zero waste” implies that no trash from a stadium goes to waste, the accepted definition is aiming to divert at least 90% of waste from landfills. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates the national average for communities is 32% diversion of solid waste. As a whole, UNC Charlotte’s diversion rate is only slightly better than the national average. The zero-waste stadium initiative is an effort to move the needle at the University and beyond.