The Greenest of Olympics: Where is the Caulking in the Bathrooms?
The promise of the greenest of all Olympics may be fading in the mud of the Olympic Village. As the Opening Ceremonies are just days away, the more immediate concern is the condition of the hotel rooms. When a reporter for the Washington Post starts posting pictures of the sink in her bathroom, you know that you have a PR problem. It’s not that anyone is hoping that the Russians will fail to put on a stellar Olympics. But the reality is sinking in that the 2014 Winter Olympics, despite being the costliest ever, are not ready for prime time.
A few weeks ago, the news dominating the papers was on the gross cost overruns, and the picture of the dual toilets in one stall courtesy of the BBC’s Moscow correspondent went viral. No, that is not the custom in Russia to sit nonchalantly on a toilet side by side with one’s friend or neighbor, let alone a stranger, as they are doing their business into a twin toilet a couple of feet away. Most Russians even today would cringe to have a toilet even in the same space as a shower or bath.
The journalists arriving early have reported that three of the nine press hotels are not yet ready. It reminds one of the end of the month “storming” during the Soviet era, when factories would go into overdrive to meet their monthly quotas. Quality didn’t matter; throughput was the main goal. It may be that the Russian organizers of the Olympic Games were educated in the Soviet model. With any luck, just as the Soviet factory managers would meet their quotas, however they had to, the Olympic organizers still have a good 24-48 hours to put the finishing touches on the hotels. But the news coming out of Sochi, Russia is not altogether reassuring
This was supposed to be the crowning achievement of Russian’s reemergence as a world power on the international stage. The security in and around Sochi has been front and center in the various media. And now that the press is converging on Sochi, the lack of preparation despite the huge costs will do little to bolster the image of Russia.
And that is not even talking about the green Olympics that might have been. What was the opportunity to create a green Olympics is now just static in the background of other more pressing issues. The potential for these Olympics to be the greenest of all of the Olympics has faded as there are more concerns about a terrorist act or even more mundane matters like the readiness of hotel rooms in Sochi.
Now everyone seems to be holding their collective breath just to get through the next couple of weeks without a terrorist act in or around the Olympics. That is just the security situation, and in this day and age, despite all of the precautions anywhere and everywhere, a determined terrorist can strike. Give the Russians the benefit of the doubt that they are doing everything possible to prevent any disruption of these Games.
But come on, after twenty years of independence, you would think that they would have figured out how to stage a world class event. Twenty years ago, the Russians would host Yugoslav guest workers to build hotels, buildings and other construction projects. Russia has had a good two decades to learn the trade.
It almost seems quaint that in 2009, “Organizers of the Sochi Olympics, say they want these to be the greenest, most environmentally aware games ever staged,” according to CNN. Yeah, right. As recently as a few months ago, the organizers trumpeted in their press release the “Renewable energy sources, self-powered street lighting, ‘eco-roofs’ and other innovative eco-technologies” that were supposed to be integrated into the construction of the Olympic venues in Sochi. If the caulking in the bathrooms is any indication, then these green projects may not have been up to snuff.
The organizers made special mention (or was it window dressing) that they were using solar hot water heating. According to the press release, the “potential for solar energy” (sounds to me like Soviet speak) has been “successfully applied at the new railway station in Adler, where solar-powered radiators and boilers have been installed, to service buildings, including the water-based heating systems.” Is that all that was promised to make these the greenest of all Olympics?
According to the press release, “The use of solar power as a ‘green’ alternative to traditional sources of energy will enable annual savings of up to 30% on heating costs, and will satisfy all of the venue’s requirements as regards hot water.” We will try to look at some of the reports to see how green these Olympics will be.