Bonnaroo goes green

Rock the Earth and Clean Vibes, two environmental activist groups, worked together with management, musicians, festival-goers and other organizations to reduce the carbon footprint of Bonnaroo 2009.

Elyce Turner, the tour coordinator for Rock the Earth, said she was told that music festivals are the second largest creators of waste on the planet. However, she said she feels that Bonnaroo puts a strong effort in reducing a carbon footprint.

"Music festivals as a whole are pretty environmentally taxing," Turner said. "But, I see that Bonnaroo does make a lot of effort to curtail the waste that is produced."

Turner said that the music festival has instituted numerous programs, such as encouraging the reuse of water bottles with filtrated water, bringing Clean Vibes to pick up litter and waste and setting up trash areas to separate recycling and compost from landfill garbage.

"I have been to Bonnaroo the past two years, [and] they are doing more than they have done in the past," said Taylor Burnham, a festival attendee from Atlanta. "It is the first year that I have seen a trash can for composting, and people inside with 'Trash Talker' shirts that tell people where their cans need to go."

Burnham also said that he appreciated Planetroo, an area of the festival where attendees can visit between performances to learn about living a sustainable life from organizations like Rock the Earth. He said that there is even a competition for the campers with the most recycling collected. The winner of the competition won two tickets to next year's festivities.

"I talked to a girl earlier who was trying to get people to come to a Robert Kennedy Jr. talk about environmental protection," said Maureen Conlin, a festival attendee from Philadelphia. "I think that this crowd is really into taking care of the environment as a whole."

Turner said that Rock the Earth works off a two-armed system. One half of the organization works at festivals and concerts, like herself; while the other half of the organization handles legal and technical battles hands-on. Their aim is to provide assistance to communities with ecological issues, while informing the rest of the world about the ongoing crisis.

"We partner with members of the music community such as Dave Matthews, Michael Franti, Gov't Mule, and The Alman Brothers [who] bring to us issues around the country where the land is being threatened to unsustainable use," Turner said. "Music fans are really passionate people, so we want to get them fired up about all of these issues that are very near and dear to the hearts of the musicians that they are fans of."

Turner said that by providing education and outreach at festivals and events, they are able to sign up members and accept donations. Of all of the donations and membership dues that Rock the Earth collect, 85 percent of the donations go to the resolution of environmental issues.

Lauren Williams, a festival attendee from New York City, said she feels the festival definitely adds to the problem.

"They spent a lot of energy being green, but if the event didn't exist it would be a lot better for the environment overall," Williams said. "I guess it is better than doing nothing."

Williams said that she has seen a large amount of disposable cups and packaging that would eventually get thrown out.

However, Turner of Rock the Earth said that people need to stay around to see Clean Vibes in action.

"Yes, the ground [gets] littered, but Green Vibes will come in with a line of people and they do a sweep of the field, [and] they are sorting as they sweep," Turner said. "And even if that didn't happen, the amount of trash that is collected and sorted at the trash centers does a more than if they didn't have that effort."

Dylan Burnett, an MTSU student in the recording industry management program, said that while attending Bonnaroo 2009, he felt positive about the use of green programs and bringing in local businesses as vendors.

"The environmental effects are wonderful because they don't have to bring in external resources," Burnett said. "I think it is an experience that everybody should enjoy."

Turner said that the atmosphere of music festivals allows Rock the Earth to reach a larger number of people, especially festivals like Bonnaroo, who bring in eco-conscious people.

"Bonnaroo makes a lot of effort to be as green as possible, and so I think the environmental groups benefit from that," Turner said. "I think they are on the right track, [and] that each year, they get better and better at reducing the carbon-footprint that this festival makes."