Committed to Compost

In 2004, California legislature mandated that all large-scale events increase their landfill diversion to 50% by 2008. Since then, and even prior to, the Santa Barbara Bowl has made it a personal goal to become a landfill diversion leader within the music industry. To deepen our commitment to being stewards of the land, the Bowl has partnered with Green Project Consultants to help to divert and eliminate as much waste as possible.

In 2014, the Bowl diversion rate reached 92%. With such previous success, becoming a zero-landfill venue continues to remain an attainable goal. The first step for the 2015 concert season was to audit the waste produced during the first two shows, alt-J & Steely Dan. With both shows at full capacity, this was a good maximum impact sample size.

One immediate item identified as impactful waste were pizza boxes from the 2014 concert season. Identifying and eliminating those boxes from the waste stream was the first action for 2015. With a little innovation from Rusty’s Pizza, and the Bowl Food and Beverage department, we have designed transport and holding systems that allow for the total elimination of pizza boxes.

The audits have shown that the current major waste types at the Bowl consist of mixed paper, plastic bottles, glass bottles, and beer cups. With this information, the Bowl is set to move forward with two next-steps to further eliminate some of these waste sources. The first, an ongoing project, is to move to 100% compostable and reusable food and beverage containers. In addition, providing reusable Santa Barbara Bowl Klean Kanteens and Silipints for guests as a sustainable alternative to single-use plastic helps eliminate a large stream of plastic waste.

To assist with creating the best processes and long-term solutions, Green Project Consultants and the Bowl are developing education and training programs for staff and volunteers to maximize the impact of all programs.

Don’t forget to share your commitment to decreasing your impact by bringing your re-useable, signature Bowl Klean Kanteen and Silipint to each show.