Our Sustainability Doctrine

Planet Bluegrass has been on a mission for almost two decades to present the finest musical experiences in some of the country’s most magnificent natural environments. For the past four years, we’ve taken a closer look at our environmental footprint here at the Planet Bluegrass Ranch and at each festival we produce by focusing on energy consumption and waste reduction. Our goal is to educate ourselves, implement what we have learned and share this information with you at the events we produce. Together, we can all raise the bar on the art of sustainable festivation.

Compost Crew at Telluride Bluegrass (photo: Russell Bramlett)
Compost Crew at Telluride Bluegrass

Renewable Energy: Our choice for the future

Planet Bluegrass depends on energy to power our annual music festivals. Our staff, artists and festivarians also depend on energy to travel to and from our events. Unfortunately, over 70% of the energy in the US is produced by burning fossil fuels which is increasingly harmful to our environment and our health. Since 2003, we have purchased renewable energy - in the form of Renewable Energy Credits (REC’s) - to offset the carbon dioxide (CO2) created by our electricity, diesel and gas consumption. This year we are offsetting 100% of the emissions created by the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, including travel to and from Telluride. This is our most significant step to-date towards neutralizing the impacts of our events. Learn more...

Festival Waste Reduction Actions

Since 2003, Planet Bluegrass has developed programs that encourage reuse, recycling, and composting at all of our events. The Planet Bluegrass waste station was created to divert garbage from ending up in the landfill. Each station is accompanied by a trained volunteer assisting festivarians with composting and recycling the majority of their waste.  Learn more about our other methods of waste reduction over the past four years.

Sustainable Festivation in the Press

Other Resources