Pollstar (06/28/22)

Organizers of the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., are struggling with the challenge of adapting to climate change, but sustainable measures to reduce their environmental impact continue to be a core mission for the event. "The reality is that this is a not insignificantly sized city," said Anna Borofsky, co-founder of Clean Vibes, a company that manages waste at Bonnaroo and other festivals and events across the U.S. "We are basically the public works department for a temporary city." Clean Vibes aims to keep at least 50% of the festival's waste out of landfills, while food vendors are restricted to compostable plates and utensils or recyclable and reusable cups. After flooding last year, Bonnaroo's organizers expanded and paved some roads, began work on drainage and relocated some campgrounds and parking lots. This year's festival saw extreme heat, prompting the Tennessee Valley Authority and the local utility to request that residents conserve power, especially during peak times of the day. There are also incentives, like free food vouchers, for campers who clean up after themselves. "It's hard to say whether Bonnaroo is going to be more affected going into the future by extreme flood events," said Tennessee state climatologist Andrew Joyner. "It's definitely vulnerable to it. I think that's something that's pretty well recognized."

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