Party Plastic Free this Summer with our Sustainable Festival Guide

Now that the sun is once again starting to climb slightly higher in the sky and glow that little bit brighter, many of us may be turning our excitement towards the influx of summer festivals on the horizon. For many, this means eagerly snapping up tickets within minutes of their release date, gathering as much neon and glitter as you can stuff in your rucksack and rounding up your group of long-lost friends. Yet this summer, before you hit order on that cheap tent or set of over the top plastic fairy wings, take a minute to think about all the waste your three day weekend could be producing. While sustainable choices often go out the window as you contend with a collapsing tent, a hangover and a relative mud bath, many of the plastic free alternatives start at home with the packing when your mind is in a much better state to remember our oceans!

So many festivals around the globe are now increasing their efforts to become zero-waste as we move from single-use to re-use. This progress has been hindered over the past two years due to the pandemic but as festivals finally get back up and running this summer, it is hoped that the good work will continue. For example, in the UK, the Drastic on Plastic campaign was highly successful before the pandemic as they encouraged over 60 massive festivals, such as Download, Reading and Boardmasters to set targets to eliminate single use plastic over the following three festival seasons. Glastonbury is undeniably one of the most raved about festivals in the world so it’s inspiring to hear that they take environmental issues seriously and set an ocean-friendly example to all the other event organisers. Glastonbury’s 200,000 strong crowd used to get through a mighty 1.3 million water bottles in only five days. Yet in 2019, they banned the sale of plastic water bottles, instead switching them for more refill taps. To make their war on waste clear, they even made the Shangri-La stage completely from ocean plastic collected in the South West. Other great initiatives are seen at Lollapalooza in Chicago where partygoers were given a free memorabilia T-shirt if they went around the site collecting recyclable rubbish.  Coachella has taken the incentives to think green even further by giving attendees who carpool with four or more people the chance to win VIP tickets whilst also providing a playground where campers’ booze-filled energy is converted into electricity. Arguably however, one of the leading sustainable festivals is Shambala which has been reducing waste since 2013, starting with asking each ticket holder to bring their own reusable water bottle with a 96% success rate. They haven’t stopped there either as they now charge a mighty 50p for a disposable coffee cup, have banned all sauce sachets and only use reusable cable ties! So with 21st century festivals trying so hard, it seems only right for us to help them along; they are making our music fantasies come true after all!

So where to start? Drinks are obviously a massive part of festivals but they no longer have to result in a ton of plastic junk. All festivals provide water taps from which you can fill your own reusable water bottle; just keep it empty until you are inside the gates to make the security checks swift! Who keeps count of how many pints they go through during the festivities? It’s probably not something you really want to think about when the hangover sets in but the plastic pint cups last a lot longer than your headache, a couple of centuries longer to be exact. Many festivals have now introduced more sturdy plastic cups which they charge extra for but you get to reuse them for the whole weekend and keep them in your kitchen cupboard as a memento long after all the glitter has finally been washed from your hair. However, you don’t have to rely on the green thinking practices of the catering team, you can always bring your own reusable metal pint cup and bamboo coffee cup whilst you’re at it for those difficult wake ups.

Festival food is also a major source of waste as taking in your own week’s worth of food really isn’t a viable option. Thankfully, many of the vegan curries, organic pizza slices and spicy burritos are now being handed to us in biodegradable containers or recyclable cardboard but if you are worried your chickpea burger might arrive in polystyrene, you can always take your own Tupperware, or even a silicone collapsible container to save on precious space. As you hand over your brightly coloured container, why not give a subtle hint to the stall owner that you wish your delicious meal came in biodegradable packaging. You can also take with you a trusty spork or a whole bamboo or metal cutlery set along with a large stash of nuts or fruit bought in bulk from your closest zero waste shop. A Welsh festival called Fire in the Mountain has already gone one step further and purchased reusable metal plates, mugs and cutlery for its 200 attendees while placing large washing stations around the site for stall holders to use to reduce food-related waste altogether.

Almost as essential as food and water are toiletries to wash off all the mud, face paint and spilt beer from the night before. Showers are a pretty elusive luxury at festivals so many turn to wet wipes, however did you know these are made from plastic fibres and once flushed down the toilet produce fatbergs which clog up sewer systems? The largest fatberg in London was 250 metres long and weighed 140 tons whilst plastic debris posed a constant threat of leaking into our oceans. Instead, why not use biodegradable wipes, which get placed in ordinary bins, or you could simply take a good old-fashioned flannel. You can also swap your plastic filled washbag with bamboo toothbrushes and shampoo bars instead of bottles. Why not share toothpaste and deodorant with friends too instead of buying unsustainable tiny plastic travel bottles?

Apart from timetabling your festival weekend to make sure you see all your favourite artists, many also spend weeks planning their colourful, eclectic, glimmering outfit for the big day. Yet before you buy that £3 feather boa or that £10 garish Hawaiian shirt, think ‘will I ever wear this again?’ If the answer is no, then your whole festival outfit is essentially single use plastic which could easily wind its way into our oceans once left abandoned in an overflowing bin. Instead, why not source your costume from a charity shop, swap items with friends or even make your own out of recycled or reusable materials. If you remain a firm T-shirt and shorts only festival goer, why not wear an ocean positive T-shirt allowing you to spread inspiring messages wherever you walk, dance or bounce. Whilst you’re out shopping, remember to pick up some biodegradable glitter which is made from plant cellulose instead of tiny microplastics which don’t hesitate to flow down our drains and out to sea once we finally step into that glorious long-awaited shower.

Finally, and what may be the bane of campers’ lives, is the tent. After a week of camping in a mud bath, your tent is likely no longer bright orange with all poles intact or even still be standing up at all. Abandoning your tent in your tired state may seem like the only option, however 25% of other festival goers also think like you, which in the UK alone, causes a staggering 250,000 tents to be left behind each year. That’s 900 tonnes of plastic waste. In fact, each average tent has the equivalent plastic of 8,750 straws or 250 pint cups. Many believe their tents will end up going to charities, however the reality is that 90% go straight to landfill, only to be replaced next summer for another three days of use. To reduce your camping trash, several companies are now hiring out common camping equipment such as tents, tables, chairs and cool boxes which you can even collect straight from the festival gates. What could be easier? If you’re fancying something a bit wilder to match your festival side, Kartent has now created tents made of thick cardboard which can withstand several days in the rain and wind and even remain dark inside for those mid-afternoon naps before the headliner. The best bits? You can decorate them however you like with marker pens, the company even set them up for you and, once you’re finished with them, they are totally recyclable. While you’re at it, why not take the rest of your rubbish to the recycling bins either between acts or on the way to the roller disco, yoga garden or simply the bar.

As you can see, there are many simple ways to keep up your ocean-friendly lifestyle, even while living in a field and dressed as a butterfly. Finding the recycling points and remembering all your kit may be a little more effort but the up side is you get to shimmy, twirl and boogie around a clean and unblemished site.

By Neve McCracken-Heywood