FESTIVAL WASTE MOUNTAINS

Festivals can be costly to the environment, so here’s how to be a carefree (not careless) reveller...

Words by Maggie Gannon and Manon Jones

The sun is shining, your favourite artists are performing and you’re surrounded by your friends; festival season is one of our favourite times of the year for many different reasons. The combination of live music, the British summer, camping in a field with thousands of new faces, and our close ones around is the perfect recipe for some life-long summertime memories. The UK music festival seasons see over 800 different ones take place across the country, in 2019 alone a total 28.5 million people attended a musical festival in the UK. From techno and electronic music, to up and coming pop, there is a festival suited for everyone. This year, with holidays and ventures outdoors becoming more expensive, festivals can be a more sensible money saving choice as payment plans and deals become more common.

But sadly, along with this season comes masses of waste and a detrimental impact on the environment. In the UK, festivals generate 25,800 tonnes of waste each year, and over 60% of this waste goes straight to landfill. Fields are left filled with broken and abandoned tents, masses of plastic waste and over £800,000 is spent to clear up this aftermath. In 2017, Glastonbury alone used 1.3m plastic bottles.

Are sustainable festivals realistic?

There’s no denying that festivals have contributed massively to unneeded waste across the last few years. However, thanks to great efforts by dedicated and innovative companies and festival organisers, there are now solutions being created to enable everyone to enjoy festivals, while keeping the environment in mind.

Glastonbury, arguably one of the most renowned music festivals in the world, made great strides to being more sustainable as they decided to ban plastic bottles completely. They revealed that in 2017, over 1m plastic bottles were sold to around 200,000 festival goers. This works out at roughly around five plastic bottles per festival goer, which is a frightening cost of not having a plastic bottle policy. In 2019, Glastonbury scrapped plastic bottles for good.

Green Man Festival, located in the Welsh Brecon Beacons, sticks to its name by working with Help Refugees and the Newport to Calais Aid Collective. Following the festival, any unbroken camping gear that is left unwanted, alongside spare food, goes straight to refugees across the world. This savvy initiative not only just supports the people who need it, but also ensures the equipment avoids landfill.

Where does all the waste go?

Based in Nottingham, Flame UK have partnered with some of the UK’s biggest music events to manage the build up of waste that is produced. Their mission is to ensure that the waste collected is saved from landfill and transported to sites that are able to recover and recycle it instead. Flame UK argues that, “The most sustainable thing a festival can do is reduce the amount of waste that is produced, before looking to recycle.” Reusable bottles, compostable cutlery and food boxes are just some of the things you might have seen popping up at music events. However, the typical festival goer isn’t always concerned about what bin they’re putting their grub in, even if they are trying to do the right thing. That’s where companies like Flame come in, as they sort the waste accordingly allowing it to be recovered or recycled, rather than heading for landfill.

We asked Flame what the hardest item to dispose of at the moment is. Their answer? Vapes. Discarded vapes are now becoming more and more common

OVER 100 MILLION

250,000 tents

SUNDAY GOES STRAIGHT TO LANDFILL

68% OF WASTE especially at festivals. Unfortunately, due to their lithium batteries, they’re even trickier to dispose of and need to be handled by the professionals. Flame explained that once vapes are collected, “They’ll be taken to a recycling facility that can remove the battery for it to be recycled and then recycle the hard plastic casing into a new material.”

Making a change

By festival organisers taking active steps to make their festivals more sustainable, it means more of us can enjoy our favourite festivals without the environmental impacts resting heavy on our conscience. The Association of Independent Festivals (AIF) is the UK’s leading festival body that currently represents over 90 festivals. Some of which are pretty big names in the scene like Boardmasters, Boomtown, and Truck Festival. Every year they host ‘Festival Congress’ - a big talk in February aimed at uniting organisers on topical issues in the industry before the main season starts. This year a big focus was energy usage and fuel sources. CEO of AIF John Rostron chatted to us about some of the challenges facing the industry.

John discussed how although many festivals are committed to trying out other forms of renewable energy to run their events as opposed to diesel, the availability of them is still very limited. Without action from the government, this is something difficult to commit to. He added that the two barriers are “price and scaling”. Renewable energy is expensive, and hard to scale up for the size of events some of these festivals are putting on. Another key issue, in relation to energy, is the artists themselves. John said more conversation needs to be had between organisers and artists in terms of what is really needed to put on their show. He added that currently, about “40% is the difference between what artists are wanting and what they actually need” in terms of energy usage.

Looking forward to a brighter future, 2023 marks a time where the risk of a festival being cancelled is far less than it has been in previous years. This means, research in the industry can be carried out, and change can be monitored to see what effect it has on our environment. John has one major aim for the end of this year, figuring out “Is spending the weekend at a festival better than if you all stay at home.” Given the stats we have just given you this may sound crazy. In reality though, if you picture a dance tent with some lights, a DJ, and a couple hundred people dancing, and then consider what every single one of those people would be doing instead on a regular evening - having their lights on, boiling a kettle, watching Netflix, showering - is it so crazy of a thought?

Five Ways To Be A Better Festival Goer

Adopting small changes to our habits at festivals can help lessen the impact on the environment and ensure that we can enjoy this season guilt-free. Check out our five steps to becoming a festival goer this summer.

1Be resuable

Fortunately, today there is a reusable equivalent for many festival essentials. From water bottles to cutlery, and funky drinks cups. Taking a reusable water bottle with you and researching the water facilities at your chosen festival is key, as over 10m plastic bottles are wasted each year at UK festivals. Head to One Green Bottle for an array of different water bottles in multiple colours and sizes before you head to your next festival.

2

Upgrade your tent

250,000 tents are left at UK festivals collectively each year, and most of them end up in landfills. Upgrading your tent to a stronger and more reliable tent will help to reduce this number as most tents are left behind as they are damaged or completely broken. Having a tent that you, and maybe your friends, have all invested in means you can continue to take it home with you after your trips. It’s not only more sustainable but will also save you money in the long term.

3

Get there green

Many of us may be travelling a fair distance to our festivals this summer and the way we choose to get there will have an impact on the environment. Travelling there as green as you can is highly important, especially if you’re attending a more sustainable event. Car sharing with your friends, using public transport like Big Green Coaches, or choosing a festival that is an easy distance from your home can all help to reduce the overall environmental impact of festivals, as well as your own carbon footprint.

4

Be conscious

It’s very easy to get over-excited for festivals, but this can quickly lead to overpacking and overbuying. It’s important to be conscious of how much you are consuming and buying before a festival as it can easily lead to waste. Across UK festivals, 400 tonnes of food are wasted each year. When you’re stocking up on food, drinks, and everything else you think you might need for your big weekend, be mindful of how much you are taking and question whether you need everything.

5

Ditch the minis

Switching up your beauty products can make you a better festival goer. Using shampoo and conditioner bars can be a great way to be more conscious, as these have no plastic packaging and a longer usage life. Both are a great alternative for buying mini sizes of our favourite beauty products. LUSH offers an array of shampoo bars for all hair types for £9, and a travel-friendly tin holder for £3. Likewise, opting for a cleaning butter as your makeup remover rather than makeup wipes or cotton pads can also be a wiser choice. The Body Shop’s camomile sumptuous cleansing butter is a great option for only £6!