Sochi Report -- Chiefs Target Green Standards for Olympic Construction

Olympstroy head Victor Kolodyazhny at the meeting to discuss environmental issues related to venue design and construction. (Sochi 2014)Sochi 2014 organizers affirm their commitment to greening construction projects for the Winter Olympics to protect ecological habitats and save environmental resources.

Victor Kolodyazhny met with Igor Chestin Wednesday in the Black Sea resort for a coordination meeting. The meeting between the president of the state corporation Olympstroy, the body overseeing Olympic construction, and the director of the Russian office of the World Wildlife Fund focused on the environmental aspects of Olympic venue design and construction.

Also present for the meeting were head of the Sochi 2014 Environmental Support Department, Dmitry Kolosov, and representatives of other stakeholders involved in Olympic construction efforts.

Russia's Olympic chiefs restated their commitment to maintaining regular constructive dialogue with environmental organizations that they have frequently clashed with since Sochi won the Games in 2007.

Russia is spending billions of dollars to build virtually all its venues from scratch. With a total of 247 Olympic projects slated for completion for the Games, there's been no shortage of environmental concerns.

Last July, the IOC approved a new site for the Olympic sliding center following months of controversy over original plans. Sochi 2014 organizers bowed to pressure from Greenpeace Russia, the World Wildlife Fund and other NGOs to relocate the bobsleigh, luge and skeleton venue in the Krasnaya Polyana mountains due to ecological concerns.

At today's meeting, the development of a ‘Green Standards’ system, based on international standards, came under scrutiny; it will see environmental and resource-saving technologies used during Olympic construction work in Sochi.

Sochi 2014 has organized a series of orientation seminars to bring its Olympic officials up to speed on the standards. The first seminar is on Friday.

“In the high-tech society we live in today, it is sometimes difficult to strike the right balance between technology and environment. But actually, innovation is key to a ‘greener’ future,” said Sochi 2014 President and CEO Dmitry Chernyshenko in a statement.

“Our first task as organizers of Sochi 2014 is to host a truly innovative Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games that will not only preserve the unique nature around Sochi, but also enhance the region’s Russian PM Vladimir Putin with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak at last month's Presidium of Council for Sochi 2014 Preparations. (Sochi 2014)environment.

“While many other parts of the world already embrace ‘green standards’ in the construction industry, Sochi 2014 is seeing these being widely applied for the first time in Russia during the preparation of the Games in 2014,” he said.

Chernyshenko attended the Russia-Great Britain Olympic Partnership conference in Moscow Tuesday to share the opportunities for British businesses and investors associated with preparations for the country's first Winter Games.

The conference attracted design and construction specialists including HOK Sport, the architect behind the design of London 2012's 80,000-seat main stadium. British construction machinery manufacture firm JCB, which has secured a multimillion dollar contract to supply excavators for Games preparations in Sochi, was represented. MACE, a consultant for project management at Olimpstroy, also sent officials.

Chernyshenko told British investors that one of the most significant opportunities was in marketing. Sochi has already filled its tier one telecom and oil categories and he used the pitch that a partnership “opens an exclusive door to one of the most dynamic regions and projects in Russia.”

Chernyshenko and Dmitry Kozak, Russia's deputy prime minister responsible for Games preparations, will attend the Real Estate MIPIM exhibition in Cannes, France next week to encourage private investors to get involved in the Olympic venture.

The quest for private sector cash to keep Olympic construction projects on track has assumed greater importance amid the financial crisis that has hit Russia hard and sparked a reported decline in interest from some potential private investors.

Meanwhile, Sochi 2014 is gearing up to celebrate the five-year-to-go mark to the Sochi Paralympic Games later this week.

“Paralympic events in Sochi will take place on March 7 to 16, 2014. Competitions will be held at the same venues, previously used for Olympic competitions. Currently five sports are confirmed: alpine skiing, wheelchair curling, sledge hockey, cross-country skiing and biathlon,” a Sochi 2014 spokeswoman tells ATR.

Another milestone ahead is the election of a new mayor for Sochi. ATR understands that acting Mayor Dzhambulat Khatuov is the only candidate. He is expected to be officially inaugurated at elections on April 26.

The IOC coordination commission for Sochi, led by Jean-Claude Killy, visits the Black Sea resort for its annual check on preparations May 13-14.

With reporting from Mark Bisson.

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