When the music stopped following 2025’s summertime events, 250,000 tents were left littering fields across the UK. We must do better this year.
We’re only three weeks away from Britain’s busiest weekend for music festivals, with Reading and Leeds just two examples of major outdoor gatherings that take place on August Bank Holiday weekend. But no matter how good the lineups are, these types of tickets also come with a grave environmental impact, with many punters failing to consider the implications of their actions after getting into the site.
At Reading, for example, 2025’s edition produced 584.3 tonnes of waste, 17% less than the previous instalment but nonetheless still a significant amount. Of this, almost 57 tonnes was made up of abandoned tents left littering the field by people who couldn’t be bothered to take theirs back home when the party finished. This was a lot less than 2024 and 2023 (71.22 and 80.12 tonnes of tents respectively) but remains a big problem when you consider that combined, the UK’s festival industry had to deal with a quarter of a million discarded tents last year alone.
According to John, Verity, waste management expert at Divert.co.uk, attendees often contribute to this issue due to lack of preparedness, rather than premeditated decisions. ‘It’s probably not many people’s intention to leave their tent behind when they go to a festival, however, the situation can change. By Monday morning, the tent may be wet, and most people want to go home instead of cleaning up their waste.
‘Instead, deciding who owns each job ahead of time makes this situation far less likely and puts less stress on everyone and the environment,’ he continues. ‘It may look like leaving a tent behind instead of throwing it in the bin means that it will get a second use, but there is no guarantee that this will happen. Salvage teams cannot recover everything that’s left behind, particularly if it is damaged or it is mixed with other rubbish. Taking it home is the simplest way to ensure it gets another use, and saves money too.’
Looking to help cut your own expenditure and protect the planet at a festival this month? Here are four more things you can do to reduce your footprint.
Agree who is carrying what
Groups often share tents, chairs, food and other supplies on the way into a festival, though when it comes to leaving it may be less clear who is responsible for them. Decide this before travelling and check that the load can still be carried once the weekend is over.
Tent bags and storage cases can easily be misplaced, so keep them somewhere safe. A strong spare bag is also useful when equipment is too wet or muddy to pack away neatly.
Do not treat a cheap tent as disposable
Just because a tent is cheap, it doesn’t mean that it should be treated as a single-use product. Borrowing one, buying second-hand or bringing equipment from home will usually cost less than starting again after every festival, and the costs will add up particularly for those who attend multiple festivals a year.
It’s worth pitching the tent before leaving for Leeds, as missing pegs and small tears are much easier to deal with at home, while damaged poles and zips can be repaired or replaced.
Start sorting waste on the first day
No one wants to think about packing up and going home when they arrive at a festival, but why not make the process simpler ahead of time?
Using separate bags from the moment camp is set up stops cans and other recyclable materials becoming mixed with food and general rubbish, and Reading provides recycling bags and collection points for this purpose.²
Any broken items, such as tents, chairs, gazebos and batteries, should be taken to those points too, rather than left loose on the campsite. Staff will be on hand to direct the correct waste stream for these.
Take back deposits and pass on spare food
Many festivals operate a return scheme on paper cups, cans and bottles, which gives campers a reason to bring them back rather than drop them or place them in general waste.
It also helps to agree who is bringing food before the festival, particularly multipacks and tins. Any unopened, non-perishable food left at the end of the weekend should go to a designated redistribution point where one is available.
Image: Kenji Katahira / Unsplash
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