Korea Baseball Organization ballparks generated 2,931.7 tons of general waste during the regular season, marking a 24.3 percent increase from the previous year according to data released by lawmakers.
Surging Attendance Drives Waste Volume Up Across Nine Stadiums
The total waste tonnage across the country’s nine professional baseball venues rose by 573.83 tons compared to the 2,357.87 tons recorded in the prior year. Evaluated against 2023 levels of 1,895.9 tons, the two-year increase stands at 54.6 percent. Regular season attendance grew from 10,887,705 spectators to 12,312,519 spectators over the same timeframe, representing a 13.1 percent uptick. The waste generation rate outpaced attendance growth by 11.2 percentage points.
Jamsil Baseball Stadium and Regional Venues See Sharpest Increases
Seoul’s Jamsil Baseball Stadium, shared by the LG Twins and the Doosan Bears, experienced the most pronounced waste accumulation among all league venues. General waste at Jamsil surged 132.2 percent from 214.44 tons in 2023 to 497.94 tons last year. Home attendance for the two tenants at the venue increased by 36.9 percent over the same period. On a per-capita basis, general waste generated per spectator at Jamsil rose from approximately 98.7 grams to 167.5 grams, marking a 69.7 percent jump. Daegu Samsung Lions Park saw its general waste climb 98.6 percent from 218 tons to 433 tons, while Busan Sajik Baseball Stadium registered a 61.2 percent increase from 254.87 tons to 410.94 tons.
Cleaning and Disposal Costs Climb Alongside Tonnage
Total waste processing and cleaning costs across eight surveyed stadiums rose to 45亿1393万韩元, up 28.7 percent from the 35亿676万韩元 recorded in 2023. This total excludes figures from the Gwangju-Kia Champions Field, which submitted its cost data as confidential. Cumulative cleaning and disposal expenses across the league’s monitored venues reached 118.7314亿元 between 2023 and last year.
Multi-Use Containers Face Scrutiny Over Actual Reduction Efficacy
To curb single-use plastics and disposable packaging, league operators have expanded the use of reusable containers across multiple venues. Seven professional baseball stadiums currently operate multi-use container programs, with Samsung Lions Park and Sajik Baseball Stadium scheduled to introduce the systems next season. Lawmakers and environmental officials noted that verifying actual waste reduction results remains paramount beyond simply adopting the containers. Representative Jeon urged clubs and stadium vendors to reduce single-use items while establishing proper collection and recovery networks, calling on the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, and the KBO to establish standardized reduction targets and management guidelines for every venue.
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