LTA provides update on progress in delivering Environmental Sustainability Plan for tennis in Britain
We have today published an update on progress against our Environmental Sustainability Plan.
The LTA’s first ever Environmental Sustainability Plan was published in June 2022, setting out how we intend to secure a lasting future for tennis in Britain, through positive action on climate change and leadership in sustainability.
Today’s report provides an update on the progress that we have made in delivering on this plan, as well as the LTA’s focus over the coming three years.
To deliver on our vision of Tennis Opened Up, we recognise that it’s critical we address our own climate and environmental impacts and work with everyone involved in our sport to do the same. The climate crisis and changes to the environment are already impacting tennis at all levels. From extreme temperatures and weather at international events around the world, to increasing risk of flooding at local venues across Britain, it’s important that the LTA and everyone involved in tennis plays their part.
That’s why the LTA’s Environmental Sustainability Plan is important, in ensuring that tennis, and the places it is played, are safeguarded for future generations.
Over the last two years, significant progress has been made in delivering on this plan, focused on three priority themes, each with a long-term objective for 2030: climate action; resource efficiency and natural environment.
The LTA set 10 challenging targets for the initial phase of our plan, and good progress against each of these has been made. 80% of these targets have been fully achieved, and we have also been able to achieve a number of targets which we originally set ourselves for 2024-2026.
This work is already having an impact. At the LTA’s own facilities, we saw a 20% reduction in electricity use and 33% reduction in gas use at the National Tennis Centre in 2023 compared to 2022. 21% of electricity use at the Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre was generated by on-site solar panels in 2023, whilst water use at the National Tennis Centre has reduced by 40% since 2019.
As grass court tennis continues this week at the Rothesay International Eastbourne, the impact of the LTA’s summer major events has also been reduced. There has been a 40% reduction in general waste at the cinch Championships since 2019, and a five tonne reduction in glass waste in 2023 compared to 2022.
Accounting for one-off events like the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in 2022, and the acquisition of Nottingham Tennis Centre, the LTA has also made some initial progress in reducing carbon emissions compared to a 2019 baseline. We know that we influence a wide range of indirect emissions and are continuing to understand our impact, including working with our key suppliers and partners to further improve the accuracy of our footprint.
LTA Chief Executive Scott Lloyd said, “We’re pleased to have made good progress in delivering on our Environmental Sustainability Plan, launched in 2022. Given the scale of the climate crisis and the effects on tennis at all levels, we know it’s vital that we play our part by reducing our own impacts and working together with everyone involved in tennis to safeguard the future of our sport and the places it is played.
“We know that we can’t do this on our own, and as we move into the next phase of our plan, are committed to working with everyone involved in tennis in Britain to support the environment and positive climate action.”
Since June 2022, key activity delivered includes:
Embedding Sustainability
- Delivering sustainability training to the LTA Executive and Leadership teams, and offering to all LTA colleagues.
- Developing a Sustainable Sourcing Code for LTA suppliers and funded partners, to ensure alignment with the LTA’s sustainability ambition across a range of areas such as carbon emissions, ethical product sourcing (including forest risk commodities) and modern slavery.
- Ensuring all LTA reserve funds and investments are held in ethical/sustainable portfolios, and the default pension fund for LTA colleagues is the most sustainable available through our provider.
Sustainable Facilities and Operations
- Making upgrades to improve energy efficiency across LTA facilities, including LED lighting, passive infrared (PIR) sensors and improved building management systems.
- Ensuring all electricity for LTA facilities is now sourced from green suppliers.
- Installing a new, more efficient irrigation system at the National Tennis Centre to reduce water usage.
- Ensuring all catering materials at the National Tennis Centre are reusable or recyclable.
- Introduction of initiatives supporting and enhancing biodiversity at LTA facilities, such as bug hotels, “no mow” areas and installation of birdboxes.
Sustainable Events and Competitions
- Thanks to the LTA’s partnership with Lexus, including 16 fully electric vehicles in the tournament car fleet in 2024.
- Ensuring all temporary generators use more sustainable Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil, a fossil-free fuel which can offer 90% reduced emissions compared to regular diesel.
- A partnership with BRITA as the LTA’s official water partner, to support delivery of our plan and significantly reduce single-use plastic at the LTA’s major grass court events.
- Utilising branding materials from the 2022 cinch Championships to produce media bibs and bottle-holders for ball crew at the 2023 event.
- Engagement with fans around our major events to take positive climate and environmental action, including through promoting public transport options and low carbon “eco options” across menus on-site.
- Working with a new catering provider to ensure more sustainable sourcing of food and a wider range of plant-based options.
- Establishing partnerships with local food charities to reduce food waste by donating leftover food from events. 3000 meals were donated to the local community from the cinch Championships in 2023.
Promoting, Advocating and Supporting Sustainability
- Running sessions with performance players, to understand their views on sustainability and inform how the LTA might engage and support players on climate and environmental issues in the future.
- Development of a venue support toolkit on sustainability, with a range of resources including a template sustainability policy and action plan and guidance on improving energy efficiency.
- A requirement of the LTA’s Quick Access Loan Scheme, funded by the LTA Tennis Foundation, is that all recipients demonstrate they have considered the impact of developments on the environment, and put in place a sustainability plan for their venue as a condition of funding. Funding is also available through the scheme for venues to transition floodlights to more energy efficient LED lighting.
- Working with the charity Pledgeball, the LTA Pledgeball League has run in 2023 and 2024, encouraging players at venues around the country to pledge to make sustainable changes to their day-to-day lives. The venues whose participants pledge to cut their emissions are crowned league champions.
As part of this update, the LTA has refreshed our sustainability plan for 2024-2026, dialling up the areas which will have the greatest impact and building on progress over the last two years.
Whilst our overall focus remains the same, we have identified 15 new key metrics, which will allow us to effectively track, year-on-year, how we are delivering on the LTA’s overall sustainability ambition and long-term objectives. We will continue to report on progress, every two years.
Find out more about the LTA’s Environmental Sustainability work:
