Carbon Footprint of Live Concerts: Emissions From Concerts, Music

What Are the Environmental Problems With Concerts?

There are many environmental problems with concerts. Travel is consistently the biggest offender, as performing artists often travel by plane daily between destinations while fans often travel long distances to attend shows.

Excessive waste of food, merchandise, and packaging are also harmful, as are fast fashion trends for concerts. Another issue that should not be discounted is the impact of noise pollution on local wildlife.²⁵

Understanding the Environmental Impact of Music Festivals

Music festivals differ from traditional live concerts in several key respects. First, music festivals are typically multi-day events as opposed to single-day concerts.

Secondly, music festivals usually feature multiple bands rather than centering around a single band or artist as a main act. Thirdly, music festivals are often held outdoors instead of in an indoor arena or stadium.

Finally, festivals are generally much larger in capacity than typical concerts.²⁸

So how do the above factors influence the environmental impact of music festivals? In a few major ways.

Multi-Day

Because festivals usually last multiple days, with some spanning a single weekend and others stretching out across a couple of weeks, the amount of resources required to support the event is more significant. More people will be able to attend over the course of the festival, contributing to more travel expenses, more merchandise and food consumption, and more waste.

Additionally, many festivals allow overnight camping for fans with multi-day tickets. Many individuals elect to pitch tents at the festival site, leading to a sobering amount of tent waste.

It is estimated that over 23,000 metric tons of solid waste per annum is attributable to music festivals.²⁹

Multiple Bands

A big part of the attraction of music festivals is the ability to enjoy music from a wide variety of bands at a single location within a specified time frame.

However, this does mean that multiple bands are traveling, often by plane and often with significant equipment and crew in tow.

It also means that multiple stages are set up and in use throughout the course of the event (lights, sound, fans, etc.), often for up to 12 hours per day.

Outdoors

Music festivals have commonly been held in open outdoor areas, such as parks, riverfronts, and farms. The open space allows for many more attendees at any given time period.

While there is not a large enclosed space that requires constant heating or cooling ventilation, the impact of dense human crowds and human behavior on local wildlife and plant life can be extensive. Litter is a serious issue with outdoor festivals.

Increased Capacity

A music festival can usually accommodate many more people than an arena or stadium can. Each attendee brings with them their own carbon footprint, contributing to the already vast event footprint.

Increased attendees mean increased staff, food, and waste. Below are attendance estimates for some of the better-known and largest festivals around the world:³

1. Montreal Jazz Festival: 2 million attendees
2. Donauinselfest: 1.2 million attendees
3. Coachella: 645,000 attendees
4. Rock in Rio: 640,000 attendees
5. Tomorrowland: 600,000 attendees
6. New Orleans Jazz Fest: 475,000 attendees
7. Austin City Limits: 450,000 attendees
8. Lollapalooza: 400,000 attendees

Recent estimates suggest that every person working or attending a festival generates between 5 kg and 25 kg of CO₂e daily, and a study of music festivals across multiple countries found that the average music festival is responsible for about 500 tons of CO₂e.^7,22

More than 800 festivals are held annually, just in the United States.² If these statistics are accurate, then music festivals in the U.S. alone generate 400,000 tons of CO₂e each year, the equivalent of driving over 86,000 gas-powered passenger vehicles or powering over 47,000 homes for one year!!!¹⁰

In truth, this calculation is probably a very conservative estimation, as the two-week-long Belgian festival, Tomorrowland, is estimated to produce nearly 150 thousand metric tons each year (Note: 1 metric ton is roughly equivalent to 1.1 ton). In the carbon footprint assessment of this festival, transportation accounted for almost 80% of the total footprint.⁸

What Is a Carbon Footprint?

Every climate conversation must include a discussion of the environmental impact of human activity, as humans release enormous amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. The inordinate rate at which human activity generates carbon dioxide (CO₂) contributes to climate change in a very big way because the earth’s natural defenses against excess atmospheric carbon cannot keep up with the rapid release of embodied carbon.

Atmospheric CO₂ has been increasing year-over-year since the Industrial Revolution and reached an all-time high in 2023.¹⁹

To understand the way different activities, products, individuals, corporations, and so on are affecting climate change, carbon footprint calculation is utilized. So what is a carbon footprint?

Most definitions of “carbon footprint” describe it as the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by an individual, creating their personal carbon footprint.¹⁴

This, however, is a highly simplified explanation, as carbon dioxide is not the only pollutant with global warming potential (GWP). Yes, CO₂ is the most prevalent warming gas but there are several other greenhouse gases (GHG), such as methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases that blanket the earth, trapping heat.

These GHGs are collectively referred to as CO₂e, carbon dioxide equivalent, in scientific literature.²¹

Additionally, it is not only individuals that have a carbon footprint. Companies, countries, events, and products all have carbon footprints.

Those carbon footprints are the combined direct and indirect CO₂e emissions generated during operations and in support of operations.

For individuals, companies, and countries, an annual carbon footprint is typically estimated. For products, it is becoming more common to see a life cycle assessment (LCA) of lifetime carbon footprint reported which ideally includes all life cycle emissions (See “Carbon Footprint Factsheet”).

What Contributes to an Event’s Carbon Footprint?

With any large event, there are environmental concerns, and the events industry, which is rapidly expanding, is thought to be responsible for over 10% of CO₂e emissions globally.

The biggest contributors to the carbon footprint of a large event are, in order of magnitude: travel, waste, food, accommodations, and venue. Travel alone may account for upwards of 70% of an event’s total CO₂e emissions.²⁶

Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Live Concerts Through Green Events

The responsibility of reducing the carbon footprint of live concerts touches many sectors, and in this section, the roles of the concert organizers, performers, and audience are discussed. Green events, where the use of resources is reduced to the absolute minimum, are gaining momentum, and there are a great many ways to make live music more sustainable!

What Can Organizers Do?

Concert organizers/promoters probably have the most power to implement environmental change in the live music industry, as sustainable event planning is the best way to attack a problem at the source. Concert organizers can enact the greatest change by:^6,7

1. Energy: Most electricity is still obtained from the standard, fossil fuel-powered grid. Organizers can work with venues that source renewable electricity.
   Avoid diesel-powered generators.
2. Food: Sourcing food locally can cut way back on supply chain CO₂e emissions, as can offering affordable vegetarian options! Food waste can be reduced by creating reasonable portion sizes.
   Food can be served in compostable packaging.
3. Plastics: Single-use plastics are a huge source of waste at any type of public event. Banning these plastics and offering reusable alternatives (bottles, cups, etc.) as well as refillable water stations, is critical!
   Repurpose tents and any camping gear that may be left behind.

What Can Performers Do?

The role of performing artists should not be underestimated, because they have the power to establish expectations for their tours and individual shows. The following are some creative ways performers can take action:²²

1. Inform: Performing artists should commit to an honest evaluation of their carbon footprint and an active resolution to reduce it.
2. Travel: Avoid travel by private jet and travel short to mid-distance by bus when possible.
3. Invest: Any CO₂e emissions that cannot be eliminated should be mitigated through environmental efforts such as tree planting or investment in sustainable technologies.

What Can the Audience Do?

Fans also have an obligation to reduce their environmental impact when attending concerts. Luckily, there are many ways to do this!

Knowing that the biggest contributors to audience carbon emissions are travel, accommodations, fast fashion, and waste, here are some useful tips!²⁵

1. Travel: Try to attend concerts at the closest available venue to avoid air travel. Carpool with friends.
   Opt for public transportation on long-distance drives.
2. Accommodations: Stay with a local friend or acquaintance when traveling to concerts. Choose a hotel with good energy ratings and active sustainability goals.
   Consider camping but borrow or reuse a tent.
3. Fast Fashion: Avoid purchasing single-wear event clothing. Avoid wearing glitter or use biodegradable glitter.
   Consider buying from a thrift store or choose sustainable brands for new clothing.
4. Waste: Avoid single-use plastics; bring a reusable water bottle. Always pick up trash and recycling and dispose of them properly.

By planting one tree for every non-local concert attended, an individual can take their love of live music to net zero!²⁷

What Do Net Zero Carbon Events Look Like?

Large events, from live concerts to sporting events to corporate gatherings have the potential to generate significant carbon emissions, as illustrated throughout this article. A Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge was initiated at the UN Climate Change Conference in November 2021.

The Pledge challenges industry leaders to strive for net zero emissions for the event industry by the year 2050.¹³ The road to net zero includes emissions data collection from all scopes of the events industry, even those that are only indirectly tied to the events (Ex. travel, hotels, etc.), accurate measurement and carbon footprint calculation, and comprehensive reporting to establish baseline emissions.

From this baseline, the events industry can identify simple adjustments that are easily made while brainstorming solutions for their heaviest emissions sources.²⁰

The term “Net Zero” means that the amount of GHG emissions generated must be minimized to the absolute lowest point in all domains, and the remaining emissions must be canceled out through long-term carbon capture and sequestration solutions. This differs from carbon neutrality which often relies on carbon credits from investments in renewable programs to offset CO₂e emissions.¹

A net zero event is one where the CO₂e emissions have been reduced to 10% from baseline and the remaining 10% of emissions are mitigated through carbon capture solutions.^12,24 Planting trees and forests is a great example, as a single mature tree can sequester approximately 22 kg of CO₂e, according to the USDA.

Carbon Footprint of Live Concerts: Do Virtual Concerts Have a Carbon Footprint?

Virtual concerts may never fully replace the excitement and energy of a live show, but they are in-arguably more convenient, accessible, and gentler on the environment. The carbon footprint of virtual concerts includes the emissions from the performer’s show design and energy use, as well as the emissions generated from the electronic devices used to view the show and the energy required for data centers to process data transfers.

Still, the carbon footprint of virtual concerts is significantly lower per capita than their live counterparts, averaging .206 kg of CO₂e per viewer of online concerts compared to .994 kg of CO₂e per attendee for live shows, according to one study.⁵

Exploring Other Aspects of the Music Industry’s Carbon Footprint

Live music may be the largest contributor of CO₂e emissions in the music industry, but it is far from the only one. Some sources of emissions are more obvious, while others may be hidden within the infrastructure of the industry.

See the following list for examples:¹¹

• The manufacture, transport, retail, and waste of instruments and recording equipment.
• The energy required to power recording studios.
• The commute of recording studio employees to and from work.
• Promotional travel of recording artists and their agents or representatives.
• The manufacture, transport, retail, and waste of physical music forms such as vinyl and CDs, as well as the packaging.
• The energy required to power radio stations.
• The commute of radio station employees to and from work.
• The energy required to power streaming company operations.
• The commute of streaming company employees to and from work.
• The energy required to power data centers for streaming.
• The manufacture, transport, retail, and waste of artists’ merchandise
• The work commute of any individual employed in the production of physical components of the music industry.

Some musicians and recording companies are making strides in reducing their carbon footprints in different ways, such as by purchasing energy from renewable sources!²³

Does Digital Distribution Reduce the Carbon Footprint of the Music Industry?

Digital distribution has become the predominant method of content delivery for many types of digital media, such as audiobooks, games, and videos, and the music industry has been particularly impacted.⁴ Internet distribution of music has almost entirely replaced the production of physical copies of CDs, cassettes, and vinyl, which are now considered novelties more than anything else.

There is a carbon trade-off here, as vinyl and CDs produce more CO₂ during manufacturing and end-of-life treatment, but they don’t generate as much CO₂ during consumer use (only electricity to power music players).

Meanwhile, streaming music does generate CO₂ because of the energy required to run the data centers which process streaming requests as well as the energy required to power electronic devices that stream the music. An hour of music streaming can generate up to 55 g of CO₂e.

Thus, streaming just three hours of music can equal the 165 g of CO₂e generated by the production of a single CD.¹⁵ Consumers can make environmentally-conscious decisions about music streaming, opting for streaming platforms that are powered by renewable energy.

The live music industry is growing steadily, as artists tour continually and new music festivals pop up in countries around the world. But how many people stop to consider the environmental impact of attending a concert before purchasing their ticket?

Travel, fashion, accommodations, food, and waste are all major contributors to carbon emissions in the music industry and the carbon footprint of live concerts.