Leave No Trace - How to make it happen?

[Quark]

Big Ground was much better this year, which was something.

I think there's a case for those of us who do tidy up and leave no trace to actively challenge those around us that don't give a shit. A lot of people will improve a bit of you call them out of it, largely through guilt!

[Untz]

I think there could be more done on the Monday to encourage people to tidy up, possibly by campsite crew walking around and talking to people or handing out rubbish bags or something. It won't stop the worst people or stop perfectly fine tents being left up, but it might encourage some people.

 

It was only because neighbours had left bin bags that I was able to tidy up properly myself as I had forgotten to bring them and I actually want to keep the place clean. I have no idea where I could have got them otherwise - I would have probably had to use empty cider boxes or Guardian bags. If I was someone less considerate I can easily imagine leaving the place in a bit of a mess.

[eoJ]

Our local firefighters (from Hayle in Cornwall) are usually invited to the site after the festival finishes to collect as many usable tents. They sell them at our local rugby club with proceeds going towards various charities.

Surprising, didn't know they let anyone do that, I woke up on monday last year in Oxylers to tents being trampled by lorries around me.

[stimo]

This was my fourth Glasto and by far the worst in terms of rubbish and camping gear left behind - I really felt a difference in the crowd generally this year, perhaps this is to do with it?

[bamber]

Site is spotless within a week.

 

[Bisque]

This was my fourth Glasto and by far the best in terms of rubbish and camping gear left behind - I didn't feel the difference in the crowd generally this year, probably where I was camped?

[Michaels denim shorts]

Glasto like all festivals has loads of people tatting on Monday/Tuesday. so tents left in relatively good nick will be taken down & end up on eBay, as will anything worth anything at all, pegs, poles, ropes, chairs, unopened food / drink etc & anything usable. They aren't shy.

The vast majority of the waste is paper/card/cans & is recycled after by litter picking teams. The landfill pile is nowhere near as bad as you'd think after the tatters have cleaned up

[Untz]

They aren't shy.

Such an understatement. There were kids looking in tents that could potentially hold a sleeping person discussing the insides with their friends. I was genuinely concerned to leave my tent alone to go to the toilet.

[Rufus Gwertigan]

Glastonbury is just a microcosm of real life and real life has it's own share of lazy scruffy c**ts. Plus we live in an age when a few people can buy some camping gear at a price that means it can be left behind.

[rednick]

https://m.facebook.com/ReclaimedTentAndCampingEquipmentSale

[lucyginger]

I remember being handed bin bags as you got on site a few years ago, that hasn't happened for ages. We always take our own but it might help to have them available at lock ups, along with the loo roll? 

[Sawdusty surfer]

People leave cheap tents as they no value to their owners.

 

  Maybe increase the perceived value.

 

  For example, anyone who is camped in the Arcadia public campsite has the option to have the Arcadia logo stencilled on to their tent. That would make their tent loads cooler and so they may want to then take it home. Other campsites could have a specific logo or even just a GFL one of some sort.

[lucyginger]

People leave cheap tents as they no value to their owners.

 

  Maybe increase the perceived value.

 

  For example, anyone who is camped in the Arcadia public campsite has the option to have the Arcadia logo stencilled on to their tent. That would make their tent loads cooler and so they may want to then take it home. Other campsites could have a specific logo or even just a GFL one of some sort.

Cool! Yes, that is a good idea. 

 

I don't really get why people buy a cheap crappy tent every year though, surely it's nicer to spend a bit more on a good one that will last. Maybe that's the point, some people's mentality is just different. 

[lucyginger]

I think I have put an apostrophe in the wrong place in that last post. 

[Drinky]

On litter in front of stages... This year the new bubble tea stand had wide straws that couldn't be recycled - so along with signage telling customers not to put them in the plastic recycling, they also had an offer of a free drink for anyone who collected 20 used straws and returned them.

 

I've just been at a festival in mainland Europe where anyone who collects 20 cups and returns them a point on the bar receives a free drink - net result, literally no litter anywhere. Perhaps at Glastonbury there could be a small point like the water refill sheds where empties could be exchanged for vouchers or similar?

 

Anything that incentivises clean-up is a good thing (even if we can agree that people shouldn't need incentives to keep the fields clean).

[DeanoL]

Cool! Yes, that is a good idea. 

 

I don't really get why people buy a cheap crappy tent every year though, surely it's nicer to spend a bit more on a good one that will last. Maybe that's the point, some people's mentality is just different. 

 

You're assuming people go every year. For a lot of people they'll have no intention of every camping anywhere ever again once the festival is done.

[Stokesy10]

This was the scene in Wicket Family Camping on Monday afternoon - pretty good effort I reckon! (The messy part at the top is a different field - Lime Kiln)

 

 

Outside Wicket Ground was the usual disgusting mess:

 

 

It seems to me that the Leave No Trace campaign just isn't working, but I'm not sure what else can be done.

 

We found several tickets in the abandoned tents while looking for anything worth salvaging. It would be trivial to ban these people from ever attending again. That would be a start at least...

That is disgraceful. It is not hard to put things in bin bags throughout the festival. I tie a couple to the corner of each tent in our group, when they get full, walk about 50 yards to a bin. Repeat. Job done. People are pathetic.

[McCor]

I found leaving no trace pretty straight forward. I took everything home, or in a black bag, and gave it to the guys nearby who were piling up bags of rubbish. Used bins all weekend. It really was not hard work.

[rzwodezwo]

Been to Rock Werchter this year, which was by far the cleanest festival I've ever visited.

Trash bags everywhere along the walking paths (like all five meters one). People who would come to your camp every morning and pick up full bags. Generally extemely clean visitors.

You could even get free drinks on the festival grounds for every 20 cups you collected. (Which meant free beer for us all weekend btw)

No clue how to deal with left behind tents & stuff though. Guess it will take years for everyone to get the message. It definitely works in Belgium.

[lucyginger]

You're assuming people go every year. For a lot of people they'll have no intention of every camping anywhere ever again once the festival is done.

True. I suppose some people who only intend to go once would borrow a tent. but there are (obviously) loads of folk who are happy to buy and leave behind. It's really annoying! 

[eFestivals]

I think I have put an apostrophe in the wrong place in that last post. 

 

^^ burn the witch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lucyginger]

^^ burn the witch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It would be the right thing to do.