Another perfect evening in Detroit for the RF Events Hightail to Ale 5K at the Atwater Brewery, which meant happy runners and a lot of beer consumed (three 96-gallon carts, or roughly 1,500 cans). The Green Team was happy too, with the 10-yard recycling dumpster from Unlimited Recycling in the perfect spot and just big enough to hold all the cardboard and other recyclables.
We put the main Zero Waste station in the parking lot that held the beer and the band, and satellite stations at the two “No Beer Past Here” boundaries on Atwater Street. Each satellite station had a 96-gallon cart and a large All Waste box, which got swapped out when full. We also set up unattended All Waste boxes next to the recycling dumpster and the Atwater tent where they sold extra beer.
Sara and Liz enjoy the final quiet moments before all ale breaks loose.
The largest waste was cardboard, with beer cans second. Other sources included Little Caesars pizza boxes (sent to compost), banana peels, bags of chips, and disposable water bottles, which are always a pain because we have to empty out a lot of them. We also collected one large bag of plastic bags and wrap.
With a smaller Green Team than last year, we got as much done as we could before the rush. We broke down the finisher pint glass boxes before the race, and tackled the boxes from the beer cans as the tables were being set up. So a lot of the waste volume was already weighed and in the recycling dumpster before the rush hit.
The team gets a jump start on the beer cartons.
We had only a little trouble with people throwing stuff into the recycling dumpster that shouldn’t have gone in there. Thank goodness it was in the back corner and not in the road next to the trash dumpster.
Thanks to the race staff, who brought us the cardboard from the registration area and the finish line so we didn’t have to go collect it. And many thanks to my staffers Sara, Liz, and Debbie. We had no volunteers this year, but they were up to the challenge and we were outta there at 9:30. Well done, team!
Happy Planet Running 