Where We're At
We've already taken some valuable steps towards becoming a circular festival and have some pivotal results to show for it...
Our initiatives so far
What we’re doing so far to help reduce the impact of brining Boomtown to life
Power and Fuel Use
We have ambitious aspirations for reducing our reliance on fossil fuels to power the event, with trials in renewable technology, and investment in long term mains distribution.
We saw huge improvements with our temporary power provisions in 2022, replacing all of our generator fuel with HVO (Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils). This means that 100% of our temporary power comes from renewable energy sources and is free from fossil fuels.
All of our generator stations are set-up on load-on-demand, meaning only the machines which are required are running.
We use Solar to power some of our remote low energy items as well using of Hydrogen generators and Electric buggies.
Audience and Artist Travel and Transport
In 2022 35% of our citizens arrived by Public Transport. Customers who pre book public transport with their entry ticket receive discounted entry and free Wednesday upgrades to recognise their commitment to sustainable travel.’
We make a £1 donation for every car pass sold but we don’t have a module for customers to offset in the ticketing process.
We will carry out surveys at all main gates to the event again this year, with a hope to develop our research into public transport, supporting our aim to achieve 40% public transport travel by 2026.
Waste and Recycling
In 2022 Boomtown achieved zero waste to landfill, and saw a huge increase in recycling rates.
This year we have invested in a plastic recycling machine, so we can reuse old plastic materials to help bring life to Boomtown.
This year we will continue to develop our key strategies;
- No waste to Landfill
- Increased Ecobond Scheme - now worth £20 to the public ticket holder
- Introduce surveys to gather information on trader consumables incl. all serveware
- Complete post show audit of items which are disposed of by Production and Site Teams
Procurement
Boomtown has committed to the responsible management of its procurement process in order to deliver an incredible event whilst actively pursuing environmental and socially responsible products and resources, without detriment to the atmosphere and end result of the festival.
The responsibility for fair trade extends beyond our direct providers and it is our obligation to ensure the correct measures are in place. Boomtown has developed a Sustainable Procurement Policy for each of its departments, alongside external guidance which will be shared across all of our on-site contractors and traders.
- Compulsory compostable scheme for all food traders
- Trader guidelines and purchasing restrictions
- All new wood materials were verified FSC (Forest Stewardship Council)
- All tea, coffee and hot chocolate sourced fair trade
- Implemented ban on all plastic serve-ware
Water, Waste and Sewage
Following Boomtown 2022, which was an incredibly dry and hot year, it highlighted more than ever that proper management and water conservation is an important practice, even where no water shortage is evident.
Boomtown is hosted in the height of summer, where increased water use can be common. It is important to record any circumstances that will affect consumption, to ensure that our reporting allows for situational anomalies, we monitor our mains and tankard water usage to assist with our data analysis.
Boomtown are working to develop an increased provisions of ring mains water supply to keep temperatures lower.
All water used to dampen the roads is on it’s second use, being recycled from other parts of the system.