Earth Day was Thursday, and Major League Baseball is going green and clean -- every day -- during baseball season in its ongoing efforts to help protect the environment. 

 There are a variety of league-wide sustainability initiatives, including significant club activations, Green Glove Award recognition, minimizing E-Waste at the Commissioner’s Office, activations during MLB All-Star Week in Colorado, key partnerships with industry leaders and more.  

“There are 30 different clubs in multiple markets. You can see that every market is contributing in some way,” said Paul Hanlon, MLB’s senior director of facilities and sustainability. “Take the Minnesota Twins, for example. They have really prioritized water conservation. They have installed systems in the building to reuse water for different things, whether it’s watering the lawn [or] cleaning the seats.

“Certain things work in certain places, while other things work in other places. All of our clubs have [contributed] some way to make a difference.”

To show how serious MLB is about the environment, it named the Giants and Mariners as the co-recipients of the 2020 Green Glove Award, recognizing both clubs for achieving a 98 percent diversion rate during the 2020 regular season. Clubs reduce landfill waste through recycling, composting and food donations to those in need.

“Only two percent of the waste generated at those ballparks during the season did not get recycled or composted. So only two percent went to landfills,” Hanlon said. 

Similar to previous years, MLB will continue to highlight sustainability efforts during the 2021 All-Star Game in Colorado through the activation of Green Teams, volunteer events, water filtration systems in broadcast, media and staff areas to reduce single-use plastics, offsetting water and energy used at ballpark events, food donation programs, promoting walking and public transportation to Coors Field and more. MLB will also support the Rockies’ current sustainability initiatives. 

“We have the opportunity during All-Star Week to really showcase not only what other clubs are doing, but what the Rockies are doing as well,” Hanlon said. “We have a program where the Greens Teams will come in and collect recyclables during the course of ballpark events at Coors Field.

“We’ll work with the Rockies and the City of Denver to encourage walking and taking public transportation to the game. With a downtown ballpark, there are so many options to reduce the number of cars on the road when it comes to going to Coors Field. There is a lot of things we can do at the All-Star Game that mirrors what clubs are doing throughout the season.”    

MLB wants to bring more green into the world. It is a member of the Priceless Planet Coalition, created by Mastercard to unite businesses and consumers in climate action to plant 100 million trees by 2025.

Guided by expert partners in climate science and forest restoration, the Coalition employs science-based best practices for the selection, implementation and long-term monitoring of the reforestation efforts. MLB is also supporting the Coalition’s social media campaign to encourage consumers to dedicate a tree to a friend in celebration of Earth Day. 

“At the end of the day, all of our 30 ballparks are prioritizing environmental stewardship,” Hanlon said. “Hopefully it translates over to fans watching at home, fans coming to the game. They look and say, ‘Oh look, our club is doing this every night. Why can’t I make these changes in my daily life? Why can’t I prioritize recycling in my house?’ 

“For us to hear from fans and say, ‘Hey, I saw this being done Fenway Park and I saw it being done at Yankee Stadium, I try to make these changes in my life.’ That’s the thing we are most proud of.”