For four years the Dorrigo Folk & Bluegrass Festival Inc. have strived to become as environmentally friendly as possible. 

In 2015 a new system for monitoring the festival’s rubbish was introduced in the form of Rubbish Rooms thanks to the Blue Mountains Music Festival. Volunteers are rostered in each gazebo to help people put their rubbish into the right bin. 
In 2016, it was required of all stalls to use biodegradable containers and cutlery. Attendees were encouraged to bring their own water bottles and refill them at the Filtered Water Stations.
In 2017, we continued to encourage stalls to use biodegradable takeaway cups as we introduced Keep Cup boards. People were invited to take a mug from the board to purchase their hot/cold drink in and either keep it for the duration of the festival or return it for volunteers to wash, dry and rehang on the board for further use.
In 2018, single-use plastic water bottles, straws and aluminium cans were no longer available for sale. Food and drink stalls were encouraged to sell home-made lemonades and cordials in place of sweet drinks once sold in cans. The Festival sold their own Re-usable stainless-steel drink bottles from Cheeki. 

This year, 2019, we are collaborating with the Dorrigo Landcare Group, Dandarrga Landcare, who are an enthusiastic group of volunteers with skills in bush regeneration, propagation of rainforest species, project management and community education. Their goals are to encourage and assist local landowners and property managers with weed control and bush regeneration, catalogue and share information about local native rainforest species and provide access to local native seedlings and seed stock, by establishing a rainforest nursery. 

Since 2017 they have been working to refurbish the old Nursery at the Dorrigo Showgrounds. The Myrtle Workshop Venue for the Festival is right amongst the action. 
This year Landcare will be taking all biodegradable containers and cups and all food scraps created by the Festival and producing compost and mulch heaps, which they’ll then use to help feed their plants. 
During the Festival, Landcare are running a workshop for the young ones where they’ll have the opportunity to transplant a native Dorrigo tree into a biodegradable cup which they can take home and plant in their own garden/space. 
Landcare will talk about the work they have been doing in the area and the process of creating a healthy compost. We hope to have stories from Michael Vlasto and Uncle Mark Flanders while the kids transplant. Adults are encouraged to attend as this is a chance to educate and inspire the younger generations, as well as the older, to care for our planet. 

In addition to this, local artist Jenni Francis will coordinate a kid’s workshop using natural materials from the Dorrigo plateau. More information coming soon!

This is just another reason to support music festivals trying to do their bit for the world!