The grass is always greener
Written by Richard Martin
Wednesday, 23 April 2008 00:00
As multitudes of music lovers prepare to wriggle into their wellies and wade to UK music festivals this year, we consider a recent survey published by Buckinghamshire New University that showed more than 80% of festival fans surveyed agreed that noise, waste and traffic all contributed to a negative impact on the environment. With this in mind Richard Martin has created an eco-conscious festival guide for) 2008 with the help of Ben Challis, co-founder of A Greener Festival to let you know exactly where your muddy carbon footprint won’t squelch so deep into our green and pleasant pastures.
30th May - 1st June 2008: Wychwood Music Festival
Weekend Camping Ticket - £100
Day tickets - £35 to £50
A relatively new date in the festival calendar, Wychwood was launched in 2005 by ‘a group of festival enthusiasts’ conscious of the footprint a festival can leave behind. As such, every light bulb on site is low energy and fitted with daylight sensors while recycling bags are given out to revellers upon arrival.
Wychwood takes place at Cheltenham Racecourse and has stringent conditions for its on site traders. The caterers are all local with locally produced or sourced produce and are asked to bring only reusable or compostable, biodegradable disposables. Any surplus wrappings must be removed before they arrive. In addition, all tea, coffee, sugar and hot chocolate must come from fair-trade sources. Friends of the Earth, Oxfam and Greenpeace are regular attendees and this year you can enjoy over one hundred acts across four stages including The Divine Comedy, Billy Bragg and Duffy.
13th - 15th June: The Big Session Festival
Weekend Camping Ticket - £65
Day tickets - £20 to £35
The Big Session won the Greener Festival Award last year and landed the public’s vote as the ‘greenest of the green’ at the UK Festival Awards 07. Held at DeMontfort Hall, Leicester, this is another event in its infancy and will play host to Steve Earl, Seth Lakeman and Vincent Vincent and The Villains among others this year.
The Big Session works in conjunction with The Complete Wasters (a not-for-profit community recycling organisation), its bars use compostable pint glasses and this year compostable food waste and used vegetable oil will be collected from caterers with the aim of recycling it into bio-diesel. Organisers intend to offset their carbon emissions by giving away energy-free light bulbs and the festival welcomes suggestions from the public in ways they can improve sustainability.
Ben Challis says, “As a city based festival Big Session has a distinct advantage with low audience carbon footprints - and now they have tied up with Sustrans (the UK's leading sustainable transport charity) to reinforce the 'use public transport message”.
27th - 29th June: Glastonbury Festival of Performing Arts
Weekend Camping Ticket - TBC
No UK festival guide would be complete without the original and largest, Michael Eavis’s ever-evolving brainchild, Glastonbury. While it could be argued that the sheer scale and attendance of the festival compromises its environmental ethics, there is no questioning the hard work and keen measures the Eavises take to champion good causes. They continue to support Oxfam, Greenpeace and Wateraid, exclusively sell fair-trade coffee and hot chocolate and the festival even holds its own 'Green Trader Awards'. Last year's winners were Ecogadgets and performing arts tent of natural remedies, Chai Wallahs.
Contrary to some misinterpreted reporting in the press recently, Glastonbury does have a public transport infrastructure and will provide solutions for almost 45,000 guests this year. Ben Challis adds, "the Glastonbury Festival has a host of new green initiatives this year, including biodegradable tent pegs which will be given to all campers, a commitment to recycle at least 50% of all waste and 100 green police on patrol helping fans get greener”. The confirmed line-up remains much of a mystery as always, but Michael Eavis has revealed that Jay-Z will headline The Pyramid Stage along with Kings Of Leon and The Verve.
www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk
11th - 13th July: T In The Park
Weekend Camping Ticket - £160
Anyone for Green-T? Scotland’s favourite festival, T In The Park, touches down at Balado Airfield, Kinross-shire again in July and welcomes the talents of Amy Winehouse, Kate Nash and Chemical Brothers.
Ben says, “T in the Park is the biggest carbon neutral festival in the world and the festival's CO2 emissions are offset through various global carbon offset schemes including sustainable forest, solar and technology initiatives across the world.”
The T pickers work closely with The CarbonNeutral Company to constantly reduce and offset their emissions. Last year, they initiated a 10p deposit on every beer cup and this year guests are invited to complete a CO2 workout card in association with Global Cool. Campers will find a battery recycling exchange in the campsite and are asked to only bring phosphate-site soap as the environment around the festival (Loch Leven) is protected as a SSSI (site of special scientific interest).
17th - 20th July: Latitude
Weekend Camping Ticket - £130
Day Tickets - £55 (children free)
Latitude will be making waves on the self-styled Sunshine coast at Southwold again this summer. Its laidback blend of film, music, comedy, literature, theatre and poetry are set among the beautiful surroundings of Henning Park in Suffolk.
Ben comments, "Latitude does an awful lot to be green and promote a green ethos." Measures include a 'Lift-Share' program for fans travelling to the festival by car and the distribution of Campers Waste Kits so that rubbish can be separated at your tent and then taken to one of the staffed waste stations where revellers will be helped to recycle. Ecover shower gel will be freely available for all campers while drinkers will have to pay a £2 deposit for every cup they sup from in a Reusable Beer Cup initiative. The deposit will only be returned when boozers take their empties back to the bar.
1st - 3rd August: The Big Chill
Weekend Camping Ticket - £129
Leonard Cohen, Thievery Corporation and The Mighty Boosh are just some of the colourful artists comprising the eclectic line-up at this year's Big Chill. This successful medium-sized festival, set in the grounds of Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire's Malvern Hills, operates a 'leave no trace' policy.
Ben comments: "The Big Chill promotes site-wide recycling and has introduced a green car tax on car park tickets. The profit made from the car park tax funds green travel initiatives. The Chillers are offered free secure cycle parks, hard standing for motorcycles, free shuttle buses and (organisers) actively encourages lift share."
As well as all the performers, The Big Chill will play host to a Victorian Funfair this year, complete with a crew dressed in the appropriate attire - flat caps, bonnets, bushy side burns and all.
12th -14th September: Waveform Project
Weekend Camping Ticket – TBC
Another winner of A Greener Festival award, Devon's Waveform Project promotes itself as a sustainable dance music festival featuring the best in Psy Trance, Techno, Breaks, Drum N Bass, Old Skool Dub, World Beats, Cabaret and Chill.
"They really do everything to minimise the impact of the festival on the environment." says Ben, "Waveform is a champion of alternative energy sources and pedal, solar and wind power generators already provide a huge part of the festival's energy requirements."
Waveform is part of the global Earthdance celebration taking place in over 60 countries at more than 300 locations and aims to be carbon neutral in the next few years. It accommodates compost toilets as opposed to chemical, has a local and organic food policy and supports the charity Ecoshelter.
For those of you who plan to get closer to nature at one of the dozens of UK music festivals this summer, here are Ben’s Top Ten Tips for happy green campers:
1. If you can, travel by public transport - if not, car / lift share.
2. Take your tent home please!
3. Buy durable products, returnable bottles and containers that can be re-filled.
4. Look out for recycled goods and those packaged in recycled materials.
5. Cut down on packaging by buying your fruit and vegetables loose.
6. Put cigarette butts in an ash can
www.ashcan.co.uk or similar.
7. Buy local, fair-trade and organic food, drinks and products, at stalls if possible.
8. Use re-sealable containers to keep your food fresh.
9. Use rechargeable batteries or buy an echarger
10. Remember: reduce - re-use – recycle.
Other Green Weekends in the UK festival calendar:
Sunrise Celebration: 29th May - 1st June
Beach Break Live: 9th - 12th June
2000 Trees Festival: 11th - 12th July
www.twothousandtreesfestival.co.uk
The Glade: 18th - 20th July
The Big Green Gathering: 1st - 5th August www.big-green-gathering.com
Summer Sundae Weekender: 8th - 10th August www.summersundae.com
End Of The Road Festival: 12th - 14th September www.endoftheroadfestival.com
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