Tom HallDF Concerts venues and events including King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, TRNSMT and Summer Sessions have signed up to a sustainability charter
DF Concerts & Events, part of the Live Nation Entertainment group, will introduce a new sustainability initiative to all of its venues and events this year.
The move, which comes into force with immediate effect, will see reduced plastics and a cup deposit scheme introduced at TRNSMT, with sustainability measures being implemented throughout DF’s portfolio, including Glasgow’s iconic King Tut’s venue, the upcoming Edinburgh and Glasgow Summer Sessions concerts, and all gigs. The promoter organises over 900 concerts throughout Scotland each year.
The move comes as Live Nation Entertainment today (24 May) revealed a new charter announcing its global sustainability coalition, Green Nation.
Green Nation is committing to new environmental goals for all Live Nation owned and operated venues, clubs, theatres and festivals, including those organised by DF Concerts. The initiative’s primary targets include reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030, and ending the sale of single-use plastics at all owned and operated venues and festivals by 2021.
Green Nation aims to reduce the negative environmental impacts often associated with live events including waste generation and single-use plastics, energy and water use, transport and food sourcing. Last year, DF Concerts introduced a policy to use only reusable, biodegradable or recyclable paper straws, and is set to kick things up a notch this year, tackling single use plastics.
This year, TRNSMT is working with all bar and catering outlets on site to become more sustainable, including allowing no single use plastic bottles to be handed over the bars or at food stalls – the only exception to this will be water bottles with high recyclability, though all festival-goers are encouraged to bring a refillable bottle with them, with various top-up water points throughout the site.
The promoter is also introducing compostable plates and cutlery, alongside clearly signposted bins on site to encourage recycling.
TRNSMT will also see DF Concerts reinstate its successful deposit scheme, which previously encouraged thousands of T in the Park visitors to collect and recycle paper beer cups. The move not only promotes recycling, but aids in reducing the level of litter on-site throughout the festival.
Geoff Ellis, CEO of DF Concerts & Events, said: “We’ve been working with Live Nation for a long time on the Green Nation initiative, and have already put a number of measures in places behind the scenes. This year’s TRNSMT festival will be the first large-scale opportunity to implement some key policies that we hope will be embraced by vendors, partners and fans alike.
Sustainability is a massively important consideration when planning any event – local gig or large-scale festival. We appreciate it will not be an overnight success, but we plan to start in earnest now with a long-term view to eliminating single use plastics at our events altogether.