The Post Event Clean Up Process for Large Outdoor Music Festivals.

The end of August every year usually marks the end of the summer music festival season in Europe and North America. A critical part of all outdoor festival operations is the clean-up process post event with the principle of leaving no trace. What do organisers need to consider when planning and implementing their post event clean-up processes.

The post event clean-up process is never an afterthought but usually part of a well-planned process that involves clear contractor responsibilities, waste segregation, environmental protection and a structured handover back to the landowner. This involves restoring the site safely in accordance with environmental and landowner obligations, not just a rubbish collection and removal exercise.

Pre Event Planning.
The post event clean-up process should be part of the critical path planning conducted by the organising operational team, sometimes a year in advance of the live event dates. Organisers can minimise waste generation by implementing waste segregation and recycling initiatives whilst communicating and educating festival-goers about the festival’s waste management obligations. Regular waste removal during the live event dates can also reduce what is left on site post event. All contractors and vendors should sign agreements and contracts which detail their responsibilities for post event site clearance, waste management and the relevant schedules. Organisers will need to plan the critical path of activities that need to occur for equipment and temporary structure dismantling and removal. This will usually require detailed transport management to ensure that contractors can get quick access at a given time and perform their duties efficiently. Other factors that should be included in the post event plan is the handling of any hazardous toxic waste and the procedures for dealing with lost property left on site.

Key Activities.
The litter collection teams, usually volunteers, should begin clearing the site as soon as festival-goers leave with a focus on main arenas. Campsite zones can be more challenging because it is where significant volumes of litter build up combined with so many festival-goers abandoning tents. Careful handling of hazardous waste like gas cannisters, battery packs or even human waste need special handling and should be dealt with by teams experienced in dealing with these. A certain amount of segregation will be required and is usually a requirement specified by waste contractors who generally prefer separation of general, paper, plastics, glass, metal and food waste, for example. A separate process may be required for larger items like tents, furniture, timber and other materials abandoned on site.

Timing and Scheduling.
A typical post event schedule starts as soon as the last artist completes their set, and festival-goers start dispersing to clear campsites and exit on scheduled transport or by car. Once organisers consider the site clear of festival-goers and artists, they should perform a thorough security sweep to ensure that nobody is on site that is not authorised to be there. Once the site is considered clear, it will be the army of volunteers who will have the job of collecting all litter and identifying any lost property. Once the site is cleared of litter, the contractors responsible for waste collection will start the removal of waste, usually 1 or 2 days after the event finishes. Between 2 and 5 days after the festival is usually the period used to dismantle infrastructure (fencing, stages and other temporary structures) ready for removal along with any other contractor load out operations. After the site is cleared, it is usually appropriate for a more detailed thorough clearance of any litter remaining ready for site restoration which should be completed within 2 weeks. After the groundwork and environmental inspections are completed, the final handover should be possible, usually within a month of the event finishing.

Resources.
Festival organisers need to ensure that the resources available for the clean-up process are a professionally managed team, usually trained volunteers who have been briefed on their responsibilities and duties. These teams need to be carefully managed in tandem with contractors who will be doing the waste collection and disposal; this can reduce operational costs and improve sustainability performance too. It is vital that organisers appreciate that some volunteers may have been working shifts for 3 or 4 days prior to the clean-up starting which can have health and safety implications if they are particularly fatigued. For contractors dismantling infrastructure organisers must ensure that suitably qualified technicians are performing these duties. Organisers have an obligation during the clean-up phase to ensure there are daily briefings with volunteers and contractors with strict incident reporting protocols being maintained.

Post Event Assessment.
Once the site has been cleared of litter, waste and all the festival infrastructure, the ground should be inspected to highlight any damaged grass, rutting caused by vehicles, damage to trees and vegetation or pollution spills, for example. Depending on the damage this may require grass reseeding, filling ruts and repairing or restoring agricultural land. The damage and restoration work should be recorded with further regular inspections to check progress. Once completed, organisers can begin the process of officially handing the site back to the landowner, which will be a formal documented process.

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 by SatyaPrem via Pixabay

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