Meeting Carbon Reduction Targets for Music Festivals.

A key element of any music festival is defining and delivering their sustainability objectives. The largest impact on any sustainability targets is a reduction in the carbon footprint of an event where festivals traditionally do not have a great record. How can organisers meet their carbon reduction targets in an increasingly challenging economic and political environment.

Any large-scale outdoor music festival taking place on a greenfield site can have a significant carbon footprint. There is no single cause of this, but it is a combination of all the related activities that contribute towards running a music festival. When organisers create sustainability objectives, they should be achievable and measurable otherwise it can become a pointless exercise. What elements of the music festival can organisers control to make a significant impact on their carbon reduction targets, and what elements can they influence but have limited control over.

Quick Impact Carbon Reduction.
Carbon reduction targets are not short term fixes that organisers can make but generally involve progressive changes over a longer-term period (several years). Of course, there will be some instant quick wins, but changing infrastructure, operations, and logistics can take longer. A significant quick win for many festival organisers is to move away from diesel-powered generators, and suppliers can now offer cleaner alternatives that use biofuels or hydrogen, for example. Power generation is becoming more sophisticated in an effort to reduce carbon emissions, and the use of hybrid systems that use batteries on load profiling smart grids are becoming more popular. The impact can be increased when combined with solar and wind power generation, but these solutions still supply inadequate power for most amplification requirements. Organisers are increasingly insisting on reusable temporary structures to reduce waste and contracts with vendors now specify sustainability standards for food ingredients, use of plastics and waste management.

Measurement.
Organisers need to define how they will measure the impact on carbon reduction on any changes they make. Using tools like the Green Events Tool (GET a UN sponsored organisation) it's possible to define and measure carbon emissions. The calculator helps organisers estimate their emissions prior to the event and later measure and compare their actual carbon footprint after the event. Offering a wide scope of calculation, the tool covers carbon emissions linked with venue, international flight travel, local ground transport, audio-visual systems, accommodation, production, communications and catering activities.

Carbon Reduction of Uncontrollable Activities.
There are some significant carbon producing activities of a music festival that organisers cannot control but can influence. Probably the biggest contributor to a festival's overall carbon footprint is the use of private cars by festival-goers, making up about 70% of total emissions. Although organisers cannot control how festival-goers travel to and from a site, they can exert some influence over transport options selected. Increasing the frequency and convenience of trains, buses and coaches at subsidised prices can help convert festival-goers to public transport and away from private cars. Other measures can be increased on-site parking charges for anyone using a private car. Festival suppliers and sponsors generally have their own sustainability objectives and targets for carbon reduction. These may or may not align with festival organisers own targets and they will have little control over actual achievements. Carbon reduction clauses in contracts can contribute to a festival's overall carbon footprint, but specific targets and achievements will be negotiable so can vary.

Common Barriers to Carbon Reduction.
Implementing a carbon reduction target on a festival-related activity can also come with a budgetary cost and is a key barrier to organisers implementing changes. Influencing festival-goers to switch to public transport remains a challenge because of the convenience a private car provides when getting to and from a remote festival site. Political pressure can be unpredictable where carbon reduction is either supported or not leading to a confused environment.

The Cost of Sustainability.
Some operational changes can increase operating costs significantly, especially when considering using alternative greener power sources like hydrogen or battery hybrid smart grids which require a higher investment. Subsidising public transport options for festival-goers by reducing ticket prices or adding no cost extras incurs higher operational costs. The demands of artists and sponsors can sometimes negate the carbon reduction initiatives implemented by organisers.

For festival organisers planning their next event using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, site planning, cashless payments and contactless ordering.

Image via Pixabay

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