The Betfred British Masters golf tournament is teaming up with Harrogate Spring Water to become a champion of recycling and a showcase for sustainability.
Since the revival of the British Masters on the European Tour five years ago, organisers have worked harder and harder to reduce plastic waste and the 2018 event was the most sustainable ever, with all PET bottles being collected for recycling.
This year’s event is hosted by Ryder Cup star Tommy Fleetwood at Hillside Golf, in Southport, from May 9-12, when there will once again be a strong focus on sustainability.
Rory Colville, Championship Director of the Betfred British Masters, said: “We are proud that our waste and recycling initiative has become a showcase for other events to follow. We have worked with Harrogate Water since 2015 and they are one of our longest standing partners. All their bottles, glass and PET, are 100 per cent recyclable and contain at least 50 per cent recycled material. All the recycled PET is UK sourced material. That’s great but it is only the start. The challenge is firstly having the facilities in place at such a big event as the Betfred British Masters and secondly, educating everyone, including competitors and spectators to use the onsite recycling facilities.”
Around 100 dedicated bins will be installed to capture used PET bottles, which will be taken for recycling to Cleantech in Lincolnshire, a UK re-processor owned by Plastipak, which produces the food-grade recycled PET (rPET) used by Harrogate Water.
Nicky Cain, Marketing Executive at Harrogate Water, said: “We have been a British Masters partner since its revival on the European Tour and have worked closely with the organisers to develop a sustainable waste strategy, while at the same time ensuring the elite golfers are properly hydrated. Recycling is the here-and-now solution to avoiding waste and creating a sustainable circular economy. PET bottles are easily recyclable and represent one of the greenest packaging materials, producing four times less carbon emissions than alternative solutions. If recycled a PET bottle can become another bottle again and again, it should never go to landfill or incineration. Our switch to using more than 50 per cent recycled content in our PET bottles means a reduction of 1,250 tonnes of greenhouse emissions per year. This is why recycling is so important for the environment. We need to recycle more in order to further our journey towards 100 per cent recycled content. We are proud to be involved in making the 2019 Betfred British Masters, one of the most sustainable events in the sporting calendar and we will be back for the 2020 event too.”
The Betfred British Masters takes place at Hillside Golf Club, Southport 9 – 12 May 2019.
