Atlantic Cup is first sports event in U.S. to be ISO 20121 Compliant

by Julianna Barbieri on 25 Oct 2016 The Atlantic Cup presented by 11th Hour Racing announced today that the 2016 race is the first sports event in the United States to be ISO 20121 compliant. In addition, the Atlantic Cup’s official carbon offset supplier, We are Neutral, announced it has calculated and offset the carbon footprint of the 2016 race.

Additional data released by Race Management includes; an overall landfill diversion rate of 88%, 8,520 single use plastic water bottles prevented from use, 875 students across three cities received education in ocean health and environmental responsibility and the Atlantic Cup was recognized as the only regatta globally to achieve Sailors for the Sea’s Platinum Level status in 2016.

Race Director, Hugh Piggin said, “We are proud to be leading the way in environmental sustainability for sailing events around the world. To achieve carbon neutrality, ISO 20121 compliance and Platinum Level certification while educating both kids and the general public about the role they can play in protecting our oceans and planet is no small feat. This is only achievable through the help of the teams, our staff and our presenting sponsor, 11th Hour Racing.”

ISO 20121 is a management system standard that was designed to assist event-oriented organizations improve the sustainability of their activities and productions. The international version of the standard was developed for the London 2012 Olympics and it describes the layout of a management system that can help any event related organization to: reduce its environmental footprint and become more socially responsible, while maintaining the viability of the event. The Atlantic Cup downloaded and followed the ISO 20121 protocol and complied with the rigorous standards meeting a self-certification.

Rob MacMillan, Co-Founder and Advisor, 11th Hour Racing said, 'The Atlantic Cup is a unique event in both concept and execution. It demonstrates what can be achieved with environmental responsibility in mind at the inception. Manuka has showcased that you can run high-level professional events and have sustainability at the forefront, with full participation from the event management, sailors, and the communities they visit. 11th Hour Racing is proud of this partnership, and this level of achievement sets the standard for other events to follow.'

For the first time in its five-year history, the race had a robust waste management plan, which resulted in 88% landfill diversion rate, with 538 lbs of compost, 394 lbs of recycling and 139 lbs of trash sent to a landfill. The Atlantic Cup has been single-use plastic water bottle free since its inception in 2011.

“Tracking the sustainability initiatives for the Atlantic Cup is a challenging endeavor due to the mobile nature of the race,” said Brian Funk, the Atlantic Cup’s Sustainability Director. “The combination of offshore racing and land based events makes for a unique dynamic in ensuring we were meeting our internal goal of being the most sustainable sailing race in the United States.”

We are Neutral, official carbon offset supplier for the 2016 Atlantic Cup, offset 29 tons of CO2. This carbon footprint will be ‘neutralized’ by planting indigenous trees on local conservation land and by offering free of charge energy retrofits to low-income families. The Atlantic Cup is the only sailing race in the United States to have offset its carbon footprint since 2012, with a total of 95.22 tons of CO2.