Green Initiatives
Nozstock Festival is committed to sustainability and enacts an Environmental Management Plan in accordance with the guidance of the Green Events Code. We set individual targets based on our previous efforts and in line with the progress made by festivals of a similar size and demographic. As a demonstration of our commitment, we have taken the Festival Vision 2025 Pledge.
We are very pleased to be awarded a Commended Award from A Greener Festival in 2014 and an Improvers Award in 2016 and 2017. We were also shortlisted for the Greener Festival Award at the UK Festival Awards in 2014 and 2016. Thumbs up to all the staff, volunteers, traders, performers and revellers who do their bit to keep Nozstock clean and green.
You can check out our full Environmental Policy or read on for a few highlights…
We also have an audio version of this page which we have broken up into three parts for easy listening. If you would like to hear an audio version of the first half of this page please click Part 1 and for the second half please click Part 2.
WASTE & RECYCLING
Hydrate and save the planet at Nozstock 2023! Join our refill campaign, and we’ll keep your water bottles happy. Arriving customers get recycling and rubbish bags—tidiness is next to festivaliness! We’ve got bins for all sorts of recycling including disposable vapes, but sorry glass, you gotta stay home. Don’t worry, we’ll still recycle it for you! We’ve sourced environmentally friendly replacements for all single-use plastic on-site and enforce a reusable cup system at our bars.
Nozstock’s got some sweet deals for you! Get your Eco Bond for just £5 extra with your ticket. Bring a bag of rubbish or recycling to the Eco Bond Exchange, and voila! You’ll get your £5 back. But wait, there’s more! Sort your recycling into separate materials, and score £5, a chance at free tickets for 2024 with 2 bags, or a snazzy merch item with 3 bags. Trash has never been so rewarding!
TRAVEL
We run a FREE shuttle bus from Bromyard to the festival site and specially organised coaches run from Bristol Temple Meads, London Kings Cross St Pancras and Hereford Train Station, with return journeys available on Monday, making traveling sustainably to the festival a doddle! Check out our travel pages for more details on the bus services and how to book your tickets.
We encourage people to leave the gas guzzlers at home and therefore charge for car parking. However, if you are bringing a car, save some petrol and consider car sharing, a wonderfully green scheme for getting to the Farm.
You can also offset your emissions from private transport when you purchase your ticket through donating to Ecolibrium. Offsetting emissions means taking actions to balance out or neutralise the emissions we create. We can do this by supporting projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions or remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. We recognise this isn’t a perfect solution and is not a substitution for opting for greener travel however, we’d like to take every step possible to promote carbon literacy.
CAMPING
Hate the stress of setting up camp, not to mention taking it down again? Want to avoid the dreaded wrestle of jamming a tent into the overhead compartment on the train? Well, this year we have teamed up with Camplight, who offer pre-pitched tents for hire. Starting from £50, they’ll set a tent up for you in a good location with a comfy air mattress and a warm sleeping bag too, if you so wish! All their tents are picked from those abandoned at UK festivals, so by hiring a tent you are helping clear up events and supporting a solution to campsite waste.
People in Motion is a local non-profit organisation who provide support and needed supplies to displaced people. Their current efforts are focused on the refugee crisis, sending aid and volunteer support throughout Europe. People in Motion will be helping to collect reuseable items from the campsite clear up such as camping equipment, non-perishable food and clothing to be sent out in their next shipment aid. Don’t bin it – donate it!
Nozstock is part of the Love Your Tent campaign which is designed to bond people with their portable homes, and encourage them to re-use, instead of discard. 86% of total festival waste comes from the campsites. We’re committed to reducing that percentage, so please @loveyourtent and #justtakeithome. Remember that flimsy pop up tents often can’t be donated to charities. If you #loveyourtent than join the movement and follow the tent commandments!
Fresh for 2023, we introduce FWRD who are providing us with their ‘Free Shop’, punters can grab much-needed camping gear at affordable deposits from £10.
ATTENDEE GUIDANCE
We’ve pulled together some quick and easy guidance on how you can enjoy Noz in the most sustainable fashion below!
Cheers for giving our guidance a read, to let us know that you’re committing to keepin’ it green this year, please fill out this form with one pointer you’ll take on board for ’22 and be entered into a prize draw for £100 CASH on arrival or a hamper full of sustainable goodies!
ARTISTS & INFLUENCE
At Nozstock, we let our acts know that sustainability is important to us. We send over our very own Green Rider which outlines 10 key behaviours we ask touring parties to adhere to, and use across their tours.
Our most sustainable artist is presented with our ‘Green Artist Award’, taking place during the set of the selected winner. Last year, we saw GARDNA take home the first Green Artist Award of Noz’ – who will be next?
Every year we invite one of our amazing artists to take part in a tree planting workshop in the craft area and plant the newest addition to our star studded Celebritree Avenue. The Proclaimers planted the first tree at Nozstock 2012 since then we’ve welcomed the likes of Bill Bailey, Molotov Jukebox, Beans on Toast and Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer.
Enough about artists – we also support our traders in keeping in green! We present the Ethical Trader Award annually on Sunday to celebrate efforts to serve food sustainably including opting for renewable energy and showcasing meat-free options.
We’re also asking our fantastic traders to give us a list of all the yummy ingredients they use and we’ll calculate the emissions from each meal. Then, they’ll put the emissions info on their menus, along with the option that has the least carbon impact. It’s like a carbon-conscious food adventure! The ones who rock at reporting emissions will get first dibs on booking.
Get ready for some mind-blowing workshops at Nozstock! We’re bringing you sessions that will make your creativity go wild. Learn the magic of upcycling, where you turn old stuff into cool new things. Dive into the world of traditional crafts and use natural materials to make amazing creations. It’s all about being green and having a blast while doing it. Get your hands dirty and let your imagination soar!
GREEN COMPS
CLEAN CAMPSITE COMPETITION
Nozstockers far and wide, hold your horses, the tent judges are back for the Clean Campsite Competition! They will be around all weekend to judge your campsites on cleanliness, friendliness and funkiness. Prizes are awarded to the best tents and the tidiest campsites, including merchandise, trophies and free festival tickets! We want you to decorate your tents as best as you can. Think bunting, flags, and up-cycled décor. Think green, clean and sustainable. Get your party tricks up to par, we think we’ve seen it all, but we want you to prove us wrong! The clean campsite award ceremony will be on Sunday at the Bandstand, so get creative, and we’ll see you there
ECOBOND
We’ve got an exciting deal for you. When you buy a ticket, you pay a tiny extra bit called the Eco Bond (£5). But guess what? You can get it back! How? Just bring us a bag of rubbish or recycling to our Eco Bond Exchange on Sunday evening or Monday morning, and we’ll refund your money. But wait, there’s more! If you bring 2 bags, you enter a draw to win free tickets for 2024! And if you’re a recycling superstar with 3 bags, we’ll give you a cool merch item. So, let’s clean up and get rewarded!
TELL US YOUR TRAVEL
Want to score some 2 tickets for next year? Here’s a fun challenge for you. Strike a pose at your local bus or train station, all geared up for Nozstock, and snap a cool pic. Share it on Instagram, but don’t forget to tag ‘@NOZSTOCK’. The lucky winner will snag two shiny tickets for the following year! We’ll announce the winner on Sunday, so get creative and strike a pose that screams Nozstock fun!
GREEN ENGAGEMENT
Give our attendee guidance a read and let us know that you’re committing to keepin’ it green this year, please fill out this form with one pointer you’ll take on board for ’22 and be entered into a prize draw for £100 CASH on arrival or a hamper full of sustainable goodies!
VOLUNTEER
Why not jump on board as one of our Green Volunteers? Being part of the Nozstock crew is huge fun and you’ll meet some great people and a fair few repeat offenders (ahem, attenders). You’ll be worked hard but your hard graft will be rewarded with an unforgettable weekend of fun and satisfaction. The festival is great because you are great so we have high expectations. Helping to keep it green involves litter picking, assisting in running the Eco Bond and acting as a go-to for any punters that might need an extra hand in packing up camping gear.
Or contact [email protected] for further information
You’ll also see an exciting range of green activities for all ages, from funky junk workshops to willow weaving. Be sure to check out our programme to keep up to date with everything – there’s more green initiatives at Nozstock than you can shake a stick at!
