On April 20th, the opening ceremony of the first recycled baseball field in China was held at the Longwan Wetland Running Park in Dongguan.
The baseball field was sponsored by the Major League Baseball (MLB). This was the first time the "MLB Together" charity platform has come to China. On the occasion of Earth Day, the charity platform hoped that the first recycled baseball field would serve as a new model for the circular economy of China's sports industry.
For the field in Dongguan, 90 percent of its facilities were made from materials and production processes that met environmental standards. In terms of volumes, 83 percent of the materials used were recycled, meaning a proportion of 50 percent in terms of mass. The backstop nets were made from nearly 10,000 recycled plastic bottles, equivalent to the total amount of plastic bottles recycled from 20 MLB hitting training sessions. The base bags used nearly 150 tires, equivalent to the amount used by 37 cars. The cushioning layer was made from nearly 450 shoe midsoles, equivalent to the amount used by 25 teams.
"Green plastic reduction has become a globally recognized environmental issue. This year, as Earth Day approaches, MLB is constructing China's first recycled baseball field in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. By integrating the concept of recycling and regeneration into the construction of the field, MLB launches a plastic reduction initiative to the public to create a sustainable ecosystem for baseball fields," remarked the head of MLB China.
The MLB launched the "MLB Together" charity platform in early 2023 to foster social sustainability through baseball partnerships and community efforts. On Earth Day this year, MLB initiated the "STRIKE FOR ZERO" recycled baseball field project in China in order to raise public awareness about environmental protection and make a positive contribution to the global green ecosystem.
Editors | Steven, Nancy Ye, Luo Luyao, James
Photos provided to GDToday
