Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival

Greening FAQ

What partners does the Festival work with?

Bonnaroo is excited to be able to work with a variety of non-profits and sustainable for-profit companies that strive to make the world a better place. Many of these partners can be found in Planet Roo during the festival and in the Greening and Activism section of our website. Be sure to check the website out through out the year for updates from partner groups. Some of our key partners are Big Frog Mountain, Bonnaroo Carbon Shredders, Clean Air Conservancy, Change of Atmosphere, Rock the Earth, Conscious Alliance, Gulf Restoration Network, Headcount, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy/ Energy Action, Sustainable Table.

What are the festival’s sustainability goals for 2009?

• Incorporating more renewable energy
• Working with vendors to source more of their food locally
• Exploring a solution to alleviate the number of plastic water bottles on-site
• Increasing recycling and compostable materials collected on-site

How much was recycled in 2008?

2008 saw the highest amount of materials recycled in the history of the festival.
-    377.44 tons of trash
-    43.13 tons of commingled recycling hauled away
-    3.38 tons of aluminum
-    8.41 tons of scrap metal
-    22.97 tons of cardboard
-    3.9 tons of #1 plastic
-    10 tons of compost being composted on-site

Does the festival have to haul away the materials it’s composting?

In 2008 Bonnaroo became the first and largest festival in North America to creat an on-site composting facility, closing the loop on that waste.

What kind of fuel is used to power the festival?

In 2008, 100% of the festival’s generators were run on locally sourced bio-diesel. In 2009 for the first time the festival will be tied into the electrical power grid reducing 80% of the generators used on site.

Does the festival off-set its consumption?

In 2008 we retired 875 metric tons of CO2 from the Chicago Climate Exchange. This offset all of the festival emissions from band travel, to fan travel, to generators.

What do vendors on-site do to help?

Concession food served with biodegradable wraps, plates, cups and cutlery manufactured from a renewable resource. In 2008 we began encouraging food vendors to source their produce and meat from local farmers.

Why are all those horses on-site?

Not only do the horses and their riders provide us with excellent security and safety, their presence reduces the need for 12 vehicles on-site, all 15,000 pounds of hay is purchased from local farmers and the manure is donated back to these farmers to be used as fertilizer.

Are there any sustainable permanent structures on-site?

In the center of Planet Roo which, in 2008, housed the first ever Bonnaroo Post Office; is an amazing permanent straw bale structure.

How can I get involved in the festival’s greening and sustainability efforts?

Join the Bonnaroo Carbon Shredders and pledge to reduce your carbon footprint by 10% by 2009. Click here for more info.

Offset your travel too and from the Festival through the Clean Air Conservancy or another group in your area.

Carpool or ride share. Check the Bonnaroo message boards by clicking here, make a new friend in your area! Fan travel makes the biggest impact on the festival’s carbon footprint. The more we reduce the better.

Bonnaroo Radio