By Brittany Hardman
With festival season fast approaching it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement and it’s easy to forget that what we do and leave behind at the festival can have some serious consequences. So here are some tips and tricks to help prevent that. Lets all help keep the earth green so we can continue to enjoy our festivals in the best possible way.
Reusable Water Bottles and Camelbacks
Please, please, please. Avoid buying flats of water bottles. It is such a waste and is so easy to avoid. Instead bring one large water jug that can be used at the campsite for the things like dishes, brushing your teeth, etc. A personal water bottle for yourself and Camelback are life savers. There are water refill stations at almost every festival so getting water shouldn't be an issue.
Dishes, Cutlery, Straws, and Coolers
Every year I see sooo many people bring plastic dishes with them to festivals and it's just so heartbreaking. It’s one of those things that definitely gets overlooked as something that's not that big of deal. “It’s just a plate, straw or fork.”-20,000 people at the festival...those plates, forks and straws take years to decompose and if we can avoid that, shouldn’t we try to? For your next camping festival bring dishes you can either compost or reuse. Same thing with straws. Please don’t have straws with your drinks, and if you really need a straw bring a straw with you. There are so many fun straws you can get now and they cost like $5, if that. And you get to save some turtles with your purchase isn’t that cool? Another big waste thing I see all the time at festivals is the styrofoam cooler. They take 500 years to break down, if ever. If you are able to, please refrain from buying them. Try to bring a cooler with you or buy a cheap one from Walmart or Walgreens on your way. The earth will definitely thank you.
Leave No Trace
Only bring what you’ll use/take back with you. Try your best to not leave things behind and if you have to leave something, make sure you dispose of it properly. Always clean up after yourself and if you see litter, help out and clean it up. It’ll make the festival grounds look more beautiful than they already are.
I know a lot of this may of sounded preachy but it's more important now than ever to take care of the earth. What we do in the next twelve years will make or break if the earth will come back from this environmental crisis. I know we all love going to festivals and we all love our planet, so let's continue to take care of it so we can enjoy its beauty for many more years. Every little bit helps.
