U.S. EnvironmEntal ProtEction agEncy Recycle on the Go

Program Overview

Owned and operated by the City of San Diego, Qualcomm Stadium has undergone 

numerous renovations since it was constructed in 1967, and today offers a seating 

capacity of 71,500. Each year the stadium hosts eleven Chargers games, six San Diego 

State University games, the Holiday and Poinsettia Bowl games, and one high school 

football championship. The average audience is about 50,000 fans for Chargers games 

and 15,000 fans for university football games. The stadium also hosts other major events 

such as the Monster Jam, Supercross, and the Street Scene concert, which typically take 

place between August and December. Each year, more than 100 smaller events take 

advantage of the stadium’s enormous parking lot, which hosts car shows and fills the need 

for overflow parking during marathons and other events in downtown San Diego. 

During the 2006 football season, the stadium collected more than 65 tons of recyclables—

up from 38 tons in 2005, representing a 58 percent increase. These figures do not reflect 

Qualcomm Stadium, home 

of the San Diego Chargers 

football team.

Qualcomm Stadium’s Recycling Program

Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers football team, has been recycling for almost 18 years. 

The stadium even has donated its sod to local YMCAs and Boys and Girls Clubs of America to use on their 

playing fields. From bins placed in the parking lots for tailgating fans to an innovative partnership with a nonprofit 

organization that provides workers to collect the recyclables, the stadium demonstrates a commitment to growing 

its recycling program as well as improving the community. 

• Qualcomm Stadium has 

the second largest parking 

lot in the NFL (166 acres 

with 18,500 parking 

spaces). 

• The stadium’s seating 

capacity is 71,500.

• Urban Corps of 

San Diego County, a 

nonprofit organization 

to employ at-risk youth, 

provides low-cost labor for 

the recycling program. 

• Three hundred and fifty 

94-gallon bins are placed 

in the tailgating area. 

At least 50 permanent 

concrete containers will 

be placed in the lower 

concourse level of the 

stadium when funding is 

obtained.

Facts at a Glance 

Recycle on the Go Success Story
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Recycle on the Go U.S. EnvironmEntal ProtEction agEncy

the significant amounts of recyclable materials collected by outside parties, or the 

materials recycled by Centerplate, the stadium’s food and beverage vendor, which include 

approximately 16 tons of cardboard. 

Nuts and Bolts

Qualcomm Stadium’s program currently involves recycling in the following locations: the 

“bowl” (the seating area within the stadium); concourse; apron/entrance gates; vending 

areas; bars, restaurants, and luxury suites; parking lots; and administrative offices. 

After each game, Urban 

Corps teams go through 

the seating area, row 

by row, simultaneously 

collecting beverage 

containers and trash.

Material Generation by 

Location

This table lists the types 

of recyclable materials 

collected in various areas 

of Qualcomm Stadium. In 

the bowl and concourse, 

and at apron/entrance 

gates, the stadium collects 

plastic, aluminum, and 

glass beverage containers, 

plastic cups, and paper. 

In the vending areas, the 

stadium collects cardboard, 

beverage containers, 

and plastic cups. In the 

bars, restaurants, and 

luxury suites, the stadium 

collects glass, cardboard, 

beverage containers, 

and plastic cups. In 

the parking lots, the 

stadium collects beverage 

containers. And in the 

administrative offices, the 

stadium collects paper and 

beverage containers.

Material Generation by Location

Location Material

Bowl, concourse, apron/entrance gates Beverage containers (plastic, aluminum, glass), 

plastic cups, and paper 

vending areas cardboard, beverage containers, and plastic cups

Bars, restaurants, and luxury suites glass, cardboard, beverage containers, and plastic cups— 

mostly bottles in this area

Parking lots Beverage containers

administrative offices Paper, beverage containers

Partnership With Urban Corps. In 1999, the stadium partnered with Urban Corps 

of San Diego County, a nonprofit organization that works to educate and train at-risk 

youth in the San Diego area, to provide most of the labor for the recycling program. 

Urban Corps was founded in 1989 to address the growing problem of young adults who 

had dropped out of high school without jobs or job training. Another goal was to meet 

the need for public lands conservation and community service. 

Urban Corps gives youth a second chance to obtain a high school 

diploma through its onsite charter school and to receive a modest 

paycheck while working and receiving job training in Urban 

Corps’ environmental or conservation departments.

Today, Urban Corps workers collect all the trash and recyclables 

in the bowl area and parking lots using golf carts with openwell trailers. The workers use walkie-talkies to tell the drivers 

when bins are full and ready to be picked up. Urban Corps uses 

side-loader recycling trucks to collect and empty the bins, and 

then hauls the materials to a local recycling facility. The recycler 

provides monthly reports indicating how much material was 

recycled by weight, and Urban Corps retains the money generated 

from the recyclables to fund programs that will assist the young 

adults in finding career paths. According to Sam Duran, chief 

executive officer of Urban Corps, revenue from the 

materials recycled in 2006 was about $10,000.

Collection Logistics. To collect recyclable 

plastic bottles discarded by the fans in the bowl 

area, approximately 35 Urban Corps workers 

go through the seating sections after an event 
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to pick up trash and separate the recyclables. The “bowl pick” after a Chargers game 

typically generates about 500 pounds of plastic bottles. Based on sales figures for water, 

soda, and beer sold, the stadium estimates that Urban Corps workers recover about 75 

percent of the plastic bottles. 

Qualcomm Stadium has the second largest parking lot in the National Football League 

(NFL), covering 166 acres with 18,500 parking spaces. To encourage recycling among 

tailgating fans, the stadium placed more than 350 recycling bins in the sidewalk area 

surrounding the parking lot, near the turnstiles, and in central locations, such as near 

light posts and garbage cans. 

Recycling bins in the parking lot are used to 

collect plastic, aluminum, and glass beverage 

containers. So far, the stadium has had mixed 

success with recycling in the parking lot due 

to contamination (when visitors place trash in 

recycling bins) and scavenging (when homeless 

individuals or other “unauthorized” collectors 

pick out the recyclables). Stadium officials 

are discussing options to improve the signage 

and receptacles and may create “convenience 

stations,” featuring portable toilets, recycling bins, 

garbage cans, and containers to collect hot coals 

from barbeque grills, throughout the parking lot. 

Another potential solution is 

to distribute recycling bags to 

tailgaters as they enter the site 

to encourage them to separate 

their recyclables. Urban Corps 

staff could then roam the 

parking lot in trucks to pick up 

the full recycling bags and distribute new ones as necessary.

Because the stadium does not allow fans to bring their own food or beverages into 

the stadium, recycling bins placed by the entrance gates collect significant amounts 

of recyclables (mostly plastic bottles and aluminum cans) with relatively low rates of 

contamination. Also, scavenging is less of a problem at the gates than in the parking lots, 

because these bins fill up quickly and are emptied regularly. 

The vending areas generate a high volume of cardboard from the packaging of food, 

beverages, disposable cutlery, and other associated items. Employees of Centerplate do 

most of the work baling the cardboard and then contact the recycling company to collect 

and haul the cardboard offsite for recycling. Centerplate recycles approximately 16 tons of 

cardboard during a 12-month period. 

Glass, plastic, and aluminum containers generated in the luxury suites, bar/lounges, and 

restaurants also are recycled. The luxury suites each have their own recycling bins, and 

Centerplate’s hosts and waitstaff are trained to put recyclables in the appropriate bins. 

Unused food is donated to a local food bank. 

Before the game, Urban 

Corps staff members circulate 

through the parking lot 

collecting beverage containers 

from fans.
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Recycle on the Go U.S. EnvironmEntal ProtEction agEncy

In the administrative offices, employees recycle office paper, newspaper, and beverage 

containers. Qualcomm Stadium staff is responsible for collecting recyclables in the 

administrative offices. 

Challenges and Solutions

Challenge: Funding the recycling program was a challenge. 

Solution: Stadium officials applied for a grant through the California Department of 

Conservation to help cover the cost of purchasing the permanent recycling 

bins installed in the bowl area and to offset the cost of labor for collecting 

the recyclables. The permanent bins look like regular concrete trash 

containers but have the recycling logo and a different top and cost $500 

each. Qualcomm pays Urban Corps approximately $84,000 for about 10,000 

labor hours to collect trash and recyclables at the stadium each football 

season. The stadium also provides approximately 30,000 to 40,000 square 

feet of space to store the recycling containers used in the parking lots. 

Challenge: The stadium has experienced contamination problems, where visitors were 

using the recycling bins for trash instead of recycling. 

Solution: Stadium officials intend to place convenience stations at each of the 125 

lamp posts spread throughout the parking lot where fans can drop off their 

garbage and recyclables. 

With new, clearly marked 

recycling bins, fans 

will be able to see the 

difference between trash 

and recyclables and be 

encouraged to take a more 

active role in the process. 

The stadium is pursuing 

sponsors, including tenants, 

vendors, and advertisers to 

help achieve this goal. 

Challenge: The stadium had trouble 

with “scavengers” or 

“unauthorized collectors” 

dumping garbage cans on the ground and rummaging 

through the trash looking for recyclables. 

Solution: Stadium officials are working with their waste hauler to provide 3-cubic-yard 

bins that should minimize or eliminate the scavenging problem. Another 

important strategy is eliminating the source; that is, having Urban Corps’ 

army of workers regularly empty the bins so the recyclables do not sit 

unattended for long periods of time. 

Qualcomm Stadium plans to 

expand recycling in the site’s 

vast parking lots. 
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Recycling Results, 2005 and 2006 Football Seasons

Material* 2005 Collection

(in Pounds)

2006 Collection

(in Pounds)

aluminum cans 1,294 4,626

glass 61,699 47,871a

HDPE plastic 4,656 400b

PEt plastic 4,432 30,738c

miscellaneous plastic (e.g., souvenir cups) 0 4,690d

tin 2,615 118e

Paper 1,801 42,633f

cardboard 0 40

Total 76,497 131,116

* these figures include only the recyclables collected by Urban corps from 16 games; they do not reflect cardboard 

recycled by the concessionaire or materials collected by scavengers.

a

 Part of the reason for the drop in glass collected between 2005 and 2006 is due to the city passing an ordinance 

prohibiting bringing glass into the parking lots.

b

 the drop in HDPE plastic recovered is due to a switch by vendors to products sold in PEt packaging, especially for 

bottled juices.

c

 the jump in PEt plastic is due to vendors selling more products packaged in PEt and a prohibition against the sale 

of beverages in glass containers.

d

 in 2006, the stadium began recycling the plastic souvenir chargers cups left by fans inside the bowl area. 

e

 tailgaters are bringing more “prepared” food and fewer tin cans that require preparation into the tailgating areas.

f

 the large increase in the volume of paper reported is due to increased collection of placard board (mixed paper) 

during the bowl pick. 

Recycling Results, 2005 

and 2006 Football 

Seasons

The table lists the 

materials collected 

for recycling in 2005, 

followed by those 

collected in 2006. All 

values are in pounds. 

Note that these figures 

include only the 

recyclables collected 

by Urban Corps from 

16 games; they do not 

reflect cardboard recycled 

by the concessionaire or 

materials collected by 

scavengers.

Aluminum cans. In 2005, 

the stadium collected 

1,294 pounds. In 2006, 

the stadium collected 

4,626 pounds.

Glass. In 2005, the 

stadium collected 61,699 

pounds. In 2006, the 

stadium collected 47,871 

pounds. Note that part 

of the reason for the 

drop in glass collected 

between 2005 and 2006 

is due to the city passing 

an ordinance prohibiting 

bringing glass into the 

parking lots.

HDPE plastic. In 2005, 

the stadium collected 

4,656 pounds. In 2006, 

the stadium collected 

400 pounds. Note that 

the drop in HDPE plastic 

recovered is due to a 

switch by vendors to 

products sold in PET

packaging, especially for 

bottled juices.

PET plastic. In 2005, the 

stadium collected 4,432 

pounds. In 2006, the 

stadium collected 30,738 

pounds. Note that the 

jump in PET plastic is due 

to vendors selling more 

products packaged in PET

and a prohibition against 

the sale of beverages in 

glass containers.

Miscellaneous plastic 

(e.g., souvenir cups). 

In 2005, the stadium 

collected 0 pounds. 

In 2006, the stadium 

collected 4,690 pounds. 

Note that in 2006, the 

stadium began recycling 

the plastic souvenir 

Chargers cups left by 

fans inside the bowl area.

Tin. In 2005, the 

stadium collected 2,615 

pounds. In 2006, the 

stadium collected 118 

pounds. Note that 

tailgaters are bringing 

more “prepared” food 

and fewer tin cans that 

require preparation into 

the tailgating areas.

Paper. In 2005, the 

stadium collected 1,801 

pounds. In 2006, the 

stadium collected 42,633 

pounds. Note that the 

large increase in the 

volume of paper reported 

is due to increased 

collection of placard 

board (mixed paper) 

during the bowl pick.

Cardboard. In 2005, 

the stadium collected 

0 pounds. In 2006, the 

stadium collected 40 

pounds.

Totals: In 2005, the 

stadium collected 76,497 

pounds of materials. In 

2006, a total of 131,116 

pounds of materials were 

collected. 

Reasons for Success

Pooling funds and seeking mutually beneficial partnering opportunities with city 

departments and community organizations proved key to making the stadium’s recycling 

program viable. Recycling at Chargers games decreases garbage hauling expenses for 

Qualcomm Stadium and improves the longevity of regional landfills. In addition, 

EPA estimates that Qualcomm Stadium’s reported recycling efforts in 2006 saved the 

equivalent of more than 23,000 gallons of gasoline or 460 barrels of oil. (This number 

would be even higher if it included the recycling of materials collected by scavengers.)

Qualcomm Stadium officials list the following factors as essential to the success of their 

recycling program: 

• Gaining support from top management. The following key “players” and decisionmakers were involved in launching the stadium’s recycling program: general manager 

of the stadium, a lead staff member from the city, a manager from Urban Corps, and a 

management-level staff member representing the vendors. 

• Seeking financial support from the city government and education support from city staff. 

• Establishing partnerships with community organizations such as Urban Corps.

• Providing ongoing recycling education to vendors as well as current and new staff 

(Qualcomm Stadium and Urban Corps).

• Placing conveniently located bins and using consistent branding (blue recycling 

containers with eye-level signage). 
1

EPA is partnering with 

federal agencies, states, 

municipalities, and 

organizations to promote 

recycling in public places.

 www.epa.gov/recycleonthego

EPA 530-F-07-023

September 2007 

www.epa.gov/recycleonthego

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Recycled/Recyclable – Printed with Vegetable Oil Based Inks on 100% Postconsumer, 

Process Chlorine Free Recycled Paper

Future Forecast

Bin Signage and Placement. In fiscal year 2008, stadium officials plan to improve 

signage for trash and recycling containers, offer clearly marked recycling stations, and 

create more organized “convenience stations” for handling recyclables. 

Education and Outreach. The stadium plans to launch a public relations campaign 

designed to publicize its recycling success and launch new programs that will require 

greater public support, such as distributing recycling bags to visitors and promoting 

greater participation from the fans. In addition, the stadium is considering creating public 

service announcements with the Chargers to better educate visitors about recycling and 

ultimately increase recycling rates. Also, the stadium is developing new signage that will 

be funded by the city’s Environmental Services Department.

Innovation and Program Expansion. Stadium officials are exploring the feasibility 

of collecting and recycling the plastic (polypropylene) caps removed during every 

transaction for water and soda purchases. This and other ideas will be discussed with the 

stadium’s recycling and concessionaire vendors. 

Disclaimer: The mention of any company, product, or process in this publication does 

not constitute or imply endorsement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

• Keep it simple. Qualcomm 

Stadium uses blue 

recycling bins to make 

them stand out from 

garbage cans. Establish 

consistency in the bins, the 

signage, and placement of 

the bins to help “brand” 

the organization’s recycling 

program. 

• Place recycling bins close 

to where the materials are 

generated to make it easy 

for fans, vendors, and 

workers to use and access 

them. 

• Provide space for recycling 

activities on the property, 

including storage space for 

housing collapsible bins 

when not in use. 

• Choose the appropriate 

types of bins for the 

setting. Consider 

factors including 

color, size, durability, 

maneuverability, and 

signage/labeling needs. 

• Work with waste/recycling 

haulers to modify their 

contracts to create an 

incentive for recycling and 

ensure that they report 

recycling volumes or 

weights. 

Tips for Success

Unsorted material collected 

from Qualcomm Stadium’s 

tailgating area. Ongoing 

educational efforts aim to 

improve fan participation 

in the recycling program.