How to be A Greener Festival-Goer

Practical tips for how you can make a difference

13 May 2009

Festival organisers and bands are doing a lot now to be more environmentally friendly but the biggest contributor to CO2 emissions from a festival are actually the audience.

Consequently, it is the fans - you - who can make the biggest difference in reducing this environmental impact of festivals. So what can you do? Here are some practical tips on being green at festivals and concerts...

If you can, travel by public transport
If you use a car, lift-share - four to a car is really quite environmentally friendly
Make sure the event you go to has an environmental policy or green ideas
Reduce what you take to just what you actually need
Take your tent home
Buy durable products, returnable bottles and containers that can be re-filled
Look out for recycled goods and those packaged in recycled materials
Cut down on packaging by buying your fruit and vegetables loose
Buy local, fair-trade and organic food, drinks and products - at stalls if possible
Use re-sealable containers to keep your food fresh
Use rechargeable batteries
Avoid the queues – charge your mobile with your own echarger - see www.echarger.co.uk
Smokers can take portable ashtrays – the ashcan - see www.ashcan.co.uk
Do you need to take bottled water? Re-use a bottle at the taps
Or use bottled waste like Belu - see www.belu.org
Reuse whatever you can
Recycle what you cannot reuse
Remember - reduce - reuse - recycle
Leave no trace – just footsteps and memories

It not really that difficult and most festivals now have recycling bins as a minimum. If they don’t – don’t go! We all love live music so we know you want to have fun, but if you just spare five minutes a day for the planet we are going to have a much greener future!

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