Despite Losing Court Case Two Years Ago, Environmentalists Propel Dutch GP Organizers to Build Innovate Ways to Combat Reservations Against Racing

Sabyasachi Biswas | 28/08/2023
Despite Losing Court Case Two Years Ago, Environmentalists Propel Dutch GP Organizers to Build Innovate Ways to Combat Reservations Against Racing

Despite trying very hard to stop the Dutch GP due to environmental concerns, the green activists lost their court case two years ago. However, the activists kept on applying relentless pressure in spite of losing their legal battle. As a result, the organizers of the Grand Prix found innovative ways to limit the damage made to the environment, as per Joe Pompliano on Twitter.

The environmentalists in The Netherlands resorted to legal means to cancel the Dutch GP which made its return to the F1 calendar in 2020. With the race being canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic, it was 2021 when the GP saw protests from the green activists. They were of the opinion that the Grand Prix would harm the dune reserve of the region.

Along with that, it would also threaten endangered species such as the natterjack toad and sand lizard in the area. In the end, the court ordered against cancelling it, citing the economic and social impact the race would bring at Zandvoort and areas near it. However, the GP organizers recently found a way to limit the damage.

Dutch GP organizers found innovative ways to save the environment

According to Pompliano, Max Verstappen‘s home race organizers tried their best to keep the environment safe as well as the environmentalists happy. About this, he wrote on Twitter, “When fans arrive at the track, they are given a token to exchange for a plastic cup when buying a drink.”

He went on, “If you bring your plastic cup back when buying drink #2, you are given another plastic cup in exchange. If not, you have to pay 1 euro for a new cup.” Admittedly, if fans don’t want to get another drink, they can get tokens with a code from which they can win exciting prizes online.

This method saw huge success as over 70,000 people left no garbage or trash behind on the stands. Furthermore, the race organizers also made using public transports a mandate. This resulted in 98% of the people commuting to the track using them.

The organizers worked hard to ensure everyone was happy. However, interestingly enough, this wasn’t the first F1 Grand Prix to face disruption from environmental activists.

The 2022 British GP saw a similar blockade

During the 2022 British GP, six “Just Stop Oil” activists ran to the track after Zhou Guanyu’s massive crash. They were the same group that hampered the proceedings of cricket, horse racing, rugby, and even snooker before that.

The move was very risky because it endangered the lives of multiple drivers as well as themselves. McLaren driver Lando Norris slammed the activists for their risky move and called it a stupid move.

Nevertheless, F1 has been trying to be environment friendly for a long time now. Their plan to be entirely carbon neutral by 2030 is in full swing and they’re taking active steps to reduce ttheir carbon footprint every year.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Max Verstappen

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Sabyasachi Biswas

Sabyasachi Biswas is an F1 journalist at The SportsRush. With over one and a half decades of love for the sport and five years of experience in the field, he dreams to be a regular at the paddock when the lights go out. A Red Bull fan and F1 fan in general over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa, Sebastian Vettel, and Max Verstappen dominate the track. Apart from F1, he's also a big-time Madridista and Federer fanatic. He was a sub-junior level footballer, won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak throughout, he tries different cuisines and learns new cultures whenever he's away from the keyboard.

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