Ness Creek Music Festival -- profile of a green event

Ness Creek Music Festival is an outdoor musical weekend held in July in northern Saskatchewan. What makes it different is that environmental sustainability is as much a part of the festival as the music. In fact, it started out in 1989 as an ecological fair with workshops and a bit of musical entertainment in the evenings. Two years later, it had morphed into a music festival.

Over the years, festival attendance has gone from 200 to over 2,000. To keep pace with the crowd, waste services have had to change. This year, festival organizers hired two students to focus solely on the sustainability aspect of the festival.

Planning happens in two separate areas: the public 'festival' site for patrons and the 'backstage' area for volunteers and performers.

Festival-goers have access to beverage container recycling. Recycling stations in the camping areas, in addition to those in the 'downtown' festival area, were a new feature this year. To reduce bottled water consumption, patrons are encouraged to bring their own water supply and reusable mugs and bottles. The organizers hope to eventually make the festival a 'water bottle-free' zone.

A smaller festival held on the site, the Northern Lights Bluegrass Festival, will be the testing ground for expanded recycling for milk cartons, cardboard and tin.

The smaller volumes generated by the backstage area allow more adventurous solutions. This year, food waste from the backstage kitchen was composted. Composting must be approached with caution given the northern location of the Ness Creek site. All of their waste management practices must avoid attracting wildlife. Another challenge is the seasonal nature of the site. There are plenty of materials created during the festivals, then long periods in between.

Compost collected in 2010 was used in two places. A new fenced-in garden received the bulk of the materials, where it will be worked in this fall. The best scraps were fed to laying hens brought up to provide eggs for the weekend. Four new barrel composters have been built for use at the site and will be tested out at the Bluegrass Festival.

Beyond the recycling and composting that goes on, the Ness Creek team organizes an 'Eco-Village' each year. It is like a mini tradeshow where environmentally-focused organizations and businesses interact with the festival patrons.

(Source: August 2010 WasteWatch)

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