“Play Clean” is the name of a Ball Arena program that encourages fans to recycle products used during concerts and events, as well as reduce pollution caused by cars. Launched in 2008, the program was developed specifically for the Ball Arena and the teams that call the Ball Arena it's home (the Colorado Avalanche, Denver Nuggets, and Colorado Mammoth).

When launched, the Ball Arena became the first major entertainment venue in Colorado to provide single-stream recycling of plastic cups, all bottles, and clean paper products used during events. Items being placed in recycling bins on arena concourse started with the Men's NCAA basketball tournament in March 2008.

Other efforts to protect the environment have been implemented since the “Play Clean” program started and new initiatives are constantly being evaluated. For example, a limited number of preferred spaces in Ball Arena's parking lots are now designated for hybrid cars. The parking fees remain the same as standard spaces and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

In October 2019, Ball Arena announced that it would be the first major professional sports arena to use single use Ball Aluminum Cups® on a large-scale basis in connection with its concession sales. Ball Arena worked with Ball Corporation, the producer of the infinitely recyclable Ball Aluminum Cups®, as part of a pilot program. The cups made their debut at Ball Arena with the Denver Nuggets game against the Phoenix Suns on October 25, 2019.