49ers' Levi's Stadium in Pursuit of Becoming Nation’s Greenest Stadium with Recycled Water Use

The San Francisco 49ers’ new Levi’s Stadium is poised to achieve some significant firsts in the green sports movement. With a highly innovative design and essential partnerships with local organizations, Levi’s Stadium is now the first NFL stadium to open with a LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, and the first stadium in California to utilize a recycled water system.About 85 percent of the water used at Levi’s Stadium will be supplied by the city of Santa Clara’s recycled water system. The scope and variety of applications for recycled water at the 49ers’ new facility will be the most extensive use of recycled water of any stadium in the nation. Uses for the recycled water include:

• playing field irrigation
• a 27,000 square foot green roof
• cooling tower make-up water
• toilet flushing

Although the new stadium addresses sustainability as a whole, the attention to water use is particularly important. “With California experiencing historic drought conditions, the timing couldn’t be better to showcase the benefits of using recycled water whenever and wherever possible,” said 49ers’ Vice President of Stadium Operations Jim Mercurio.The cooperation between the 49ers and local government and other organizations shows that strong partnerships can help to conserve natural resources and set new environmental standards for sports venues. Learn more about sustainability at Levi’s Stadium