UK Festivals Produce 23,500 Tonnes Of Waste Per Year

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music festivals plastic

Taking place at the International Music Summit (IMS Ibiza) 2019, key music industry members met to discuss the reduction of single-use plastics within the industry.

With the discussion taking place around the ‘Bye Bye To Plastics – How The Music Industry Can Evolve Together For A Greener Future’ panel, it was highlighted that according to ‘The Show Must Go On, An Alarming Report From Festival Thinktank – Powerful Thinking’, UK festivals produce 23,500 tonnes of waste with audiences consuming 10 million plastic bottles per year.

The report also indicates that UK festivals use 5 million litres of fuel and emit almost 20,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) every single year. At this current rate, it has been predicted that there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050.

A key focus of the IMS panel was placed on electronic artists requesting plastic free hospitality riders for each event they perform at, highlighting that small steps will start to have a positive impact.

BLOND:ISH

“We want to remove single-use plastics from the music industry. Think about small actionable stuff that we can actually get people to do. Let’s change our hospitality riders to be plastic free. The whole point is that we make these tiny steps so we can then move onto the next layer.”- Vivie-Ann Bakos (Artist – BLOND:ISH / Bye Bye Plastic; Canada)

With the panel taking place in Ibiza, the discussion also focused on how to make a positive change on the island itself, with points including implementing three separate waste disposals bins (landfill, recycling and composting) along with stopping consumption of beef to reduce our carbon footprint.

Sandra Benbeniste

“Ibiza plastic free is possible. Just join the movement! Spread the word and lead by example. You can really use your influence to make it happen.” – Sandra Benbeniste (Ibiza Preservation Fund; Executive Director; Spain)

While industry leaders look for solutions, one thing is clear. Unless implemented and executed by a vast majority of festival-goers, the movement will not succeed.

Any thoughts on how to combat the usage of plastics at festivals? Don’t forget to let us know in the comments’ section below.

Akshay Bhanawat

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