How to be a Responsible Festival Goer

How to Be a Responsible Festival Goer

800 litter pickers have been given the unenviable task of clearing up Worthy Farm after the Glastonbury music festival. They are expected to fill 500,000 rubbish sacks as part of a clean-up of the 900-acre site, at a cost of £785,000.

200,000 people attended the festival this year, and it appears they left a trail of devastation in their wake. The organisers say that the festival won’t be held next year, to give the land time to recover.

Glastonbury is green

Despite becoming a temporary rubbish dump once the revellers have gone, the organisers do have some green procedures in place at the festival.

Organisers ask people to take all of their belongings away with them, and the slogan you see on posters around the site is ‘Love the farm, leave no trace.’

There are over 500 food vendors on site, who are only allowed to use compostable cups, plates, and cutlery. The festival has its own purpose-built Recycling Centre where collected rubbish, mainly consisting of cardboard boxes and beer cans, is processed.

Be a responsible festival goer

Of course, having green policies in place and spending a fortune on a clean up after the event is all well and good, but people attending festivals should take some responsibility for keeping the site clean and doing everything they can to minimise harm to the land and wildlife. Here are some tips on being a responsible festival goer.

Take a refillable water bottle with you

Many festivals won’t sell water in plastic bottles, so it’s better to bring your own that you can rinse and reuse. Plastic is such a problem for the planet as making it requires crude oil and when it is disposed of, it takes an age to degrade.

Think about a carpool

If you are going to a festival with a group of friends, why not try a carpool and travel together. It might mean using just 1 car instead of a few, which means less carbon emissions and a less polluted planet.

Invest in a reusable tent     

Many people who go to festivals buy tents just for the festival and then throw them away, or discard them at the festival. To avoid waste and wasting your money, think about buying a reusable tent. There is actually an eco-partnership called Love Your Tent, which encourages people to reuse their tents.

Put your waste in a bin     

Don’t take the attitude that someone else will pick up your rubbish from the festival site, because that is irresponsible. It’s just as easy to dispose of your waste in a bin or secure it in a plastic bag and take it with you.

Don’t discard cigarette butts

The chemicals leach into land and waterways, plus they can be a danger to wildlife. Many places have designated cigarette bins nowadays, use them!