Qatar 2022/ Lusail Stadium Earns Five-Star Sustainability Rating

Doha, August 15 (QNA) - Lusail Stadium – the venue for the FIFA World Cup final on 18 December – has achieved a five-star rating under the Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS), which is administered by the Gulf Organisation for Research & Development (GORD). The 80,000-capacity venue boasts a number of sustainability features, including a state-of-the-art roof and water efficiency systems. The stadium’s design is inspired by the interplay of light and shadow, based on the ‘fanar’ lantern, which illustrates the golden age of art and craftsmanship in the Arab and Islamic world. Lusail achieved a five-star rating for GSAS Design & Build and a Class A* rating for GSAS Construction Management. Executives from the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy received the certificates during a special event on Monday. The SC delegation included Deputy Director General, Technical Services Eng. Ghanim Al Kuwari, Sustainability Executive Director Eng. Bodour Al Meer, and Sustainability Communications Manager Jassim Al Jaidah. "This recognition from GORD is an important part of our FIFA World Cup journey," said Al Kuwari. "Sustainability has been central to our plans from the start as we are determined to develop venues that boost local communities here in Qatar long after the tournament. We are very proud to receive these awards and pay tribute to everyone involved in the construction of Lusail Stadium – an incredible venue that will host the biggest international football match on the planet – the FIFA World Cup final – later this year." One of Lusail Stadium’s most notable sustainability features is the roof, which is made from PTFE – a material that protects the stadium from warm wind, keeps out dust and allows in enough light for the pitch to grow while providing shade to reduce the burden on the stadium’s air conditioning. "Achieving these top ratings is testament to the hard work of the project team, which prioritised sustainability features from the design phase all the way through to construction and operation," said Al Meer. "In addition to the roof, the project site has conserved 40% more water than conventional stadium developments thanks to efficient fixtures and leak detection systems." Dr. Yousef Alhorr, Founding Chairman, GORD, said: "By meeting the exacting GSAS standards, Lusail Stadium has set a new precedent in environmental excellence, guided by the SC’s sustainability strategy. We congratulate the SC for advancing climate action by successfully translating green building principles into impactful practices. This is testament to the strong commitment to sustainability – which has been apparent from before ground was broken at Lusail and other venues." He added that Qatar is one of the unique countries in the world in the history of the World Cup tournaments for a period of 100 years, all of whose stadiums will be designed, built and operated in accordance with the highest standards of sustainability and obtaining a certificate from a neutral party to abide by these standards. He explained that the process of obtaining sustainability certificates is long and arduous and has two parts. The first is the evaluation process, which included continuous field visits throughout the life of the project, which is estimated from 7 to 8 years, in order to ensure the conformity of the building specifications with the construction directly; and the second is the office review of thousands of documents to ensure the correctness of this information and the credibility of adherence to the required standards. Alhorr added that the issue of obtaining the highest categories in the classifications is not easy, especially as it requires the project to adhere to environmental sustainability standards, which are more than 50 sub-criteria that fall under eight main axes, starting with energy efficiency, water consumption, environmentally friendly materials, location, urban communication, indoor and outdoor environment, and operating practices. For his part, Project Manager for Lusail Stadium Eng. Tamim Al Abed underlined that the stadium's obtaining of two sustainability certificates is a confirmation of the efforts made by the Supreme Committee in implementing the World Cup projects in a sustainable manner, noting that the State of Qatar achieved what it had promised, and adhered to strict sustainability standards and established them in all stages of stadium construction. Al Abed said that the most prominent criteria that contributed to Lusail Stadium obtaining two sustainability certificates are the selection of building materials, equipment and cooling devices in the stadium in a sustainable manner; operating the devices in a way that does not use excessive energy; transferring various components from exporting countries to Qatar in a sustainable way; and managing the facility’s business during the construction period in a sustainable way including monitoring and controlling waste, electricity consumption, dust and noise. He added that the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 will be a sustainable and green tournament because it takes into account the requirements of sustainability in all stages of the implementation of its projects, from design through construction and ending with project delivery and operation. Lusail Stadium will host ten matches during Qatar 2022, starting with Argentina versus Saudi Arabia on 22 November, and ending with the final on 18 December, which is also Qatar National Day. After Qatar 2022, Lusail Stadium is set to host a number of civic facilities for the local community. Any seats removed from the venue could be donated to countries that lack sporting infrastructure. Eight stadiums will host matches during Qatar 2022, which will take place from 20 November to 18 December. Each venue has achieved a minimum four-star rating under GSAS, which was adopted as a sustainability rating system by FIFA and will ensure all tournament-related infrastructure meets stringent environmental standards. (QNA)