The impact of a weekend of carefree abandon at a music festival is regularly exposed when the crowds eventually disperse to reveal

a vast wasteland of discarded festival tents, scattered over the once unblemished surroundings.

During the summer months in the UK, music festivals are a prominent feature of the cultural landscape. In 2009, over two million people attended one of nearly seven hundred music festivals that were staged throughout the country. With more new festivals appearing every year, the phenomenon of masses of abandoned tents is an increasing environmental concern.

The disposable culture that surrounds these events has proved to be a growing headache for festival organisers and environmental groups a massive problem, that seems to be drowned out by the music.

Research into this problem identified a lack of connection between the festival-goer and the tent itself. Two man tents are available for as little as 8, so campers dont see the worth in making the effort to clean, dismantle and repack a tent to use again.

A huge misconception is that all the abandoned tents will be collected by charities for reuse, however, the reality is that this only happens to a very small percentage. Recycling facilities for the various tent components do not exist either. Currently, the quickest and cheapest solution for the festival organisers is to have them dumped in landfill.

Consultations with organisers found that they do not wish to promote the option of recyclability to campers. It is the reuse not single use of tents that should be encouraged. This should be done in a playful manner, to be in keeping with the tone of the festival. In the UK, music festivals play a prominent cultural role during the summer months. In 2009, over two million people attended one of the 670 music festivals that were staged throughout the country.Avid festival-goers will tell you that theres no better feeling of satisfaction than walking away from the main stage on the closing night with aching feet in muddy wellies, and the final guitar chords still ringing in your ears.

But the extent of a weekend of carefree abandoned is exposed when the crowds eventually disperse to reveal a vast disposable culture wasteland of abandoned festial tents, scattered over the once umblemished surroundings.They are commonly left behind in their thousands, especially at large-scale commerical festivals, but post-aplocolyptic-like images are all that exisit to convey the devastation as no statistics are recorded to monitor the situation. Its a massive environmental problem that is drowned out by the music.

Despite this, festival-goers are beginning to realise the consequences of their actions. Research by A Greener Festival found that over half of all people considering festival attendance felt that these types of events had a negative impact on the environment, highlighting a new significant shift in culture towards more fans pursuing events with an emphasis upon sustainability. However, certain types of music festival- goers will not be drawn to an event that is primarily green, and a strong environmental message attached to a festival may take away from the fun and enjoyment that is primarily sought. Therefore, it is necessary to tackle the issue of abandoned festival tents without ruining the enjoyment or alienating the music fans. In the UK, music festivals play a prominent cultural role during the summer months. In 2009, over two million people attended one of the 670 music festivals that were staged throughout the

country.Avid festival-goers will tell you that theres no better feeling of satisfaction than walking away from the main stage on the closing night with aching feet in muddy wellies, and the final guitar chords still ringing in your ears. But the extent of a weekend of carefree abandoned is exposed when the crowds eventually disperse to reveal a vast disposable culture wasteland of abandoned festial tents, scattered over the once umblemished surroundings.They are commonly left behind in their thousands, especially at large-scale commerical festivals, but post-aplocolyptic-like images are all that exisit to convey the devastation as no statistics are recorded to monitor the situation. Its a massive environmental problem that is drowned out by the music. Despite this, festival-goers are beginning to realise the consequences of their actions. Research by A Greener Festival found that over half of all people considering festival attendance felt that these types of events had a negative impact on the environment, highlighting a new significant shift in culture towards more fans pursuing events with an emphasis upon sustainability. However, certain types of music festival- goers will not be drawn to an event that is primarily green, and a strong environmental message attached to a festival may take away from the fun and enjoyment that is primarily sought. Therefore, it is necessary to tackle the issue of abandoned festival tents without ruining the enjoyment or alienating the music fans.