A warm morning for the Tri Goddess triathlons at Portage Lake, with the water temperature at 83 degrees, and the forecast for a hot afternoon. So it was a good thing the races – sprint, mini sprint, Olympic, and duathlon – were over by noon. And food and drink afterward were plentiful, which kept the Green Team on its toes.
Lucy at the main station before things got busy.
We staffed a Zero Waste station near the food and beer tents, and placed All Waste boxes in transition, near the bathrooms, at the beer area exit, and near the food vendor in the parking area, with a large box by the Water Monster at the finish line. These all worked well, although the transition staff took some extra boxes for the Run Out ramp so runners could toss their cups on the way out (see photo below). We’ll add that to the plan for next time.
Litter was not a big problem. I swept the beach area at swim start, but there are recycling bins there already, and I picked up only a few items off the ground. There was some amount in the transition area, easily picked up at takedown, and just a few items in the post-race party area.
There was quite a variety of post-race food: egg and cheese wraps, pancakes, bananas, cookies, ice cream bars, popcorn, salad, and even acai bowls from a food vendor. Plus beer and cider available for purchase that supported Lost Voices, a group of professional singers helping young people who have experienced trauma.
Plates, utensils, and cups were all compostable, with just a few plastic cups from the outside vendor, although their utensils were compostable. Recycling was cans, a few water bottles, cardboard and boxboard, and paper. We had small amounts of specialty items – small plastics, race bibs, Gu wrappers, disposable gloves – which went to TerraCycle.
Landfill consisted primarily of soiled foil used for the wraps, ice cream wrappers, and oily bags from the popcorn and salad. Many thanks to the Epic kitchen staff who kept those oily bags separate from their other waste.
The team was me (Jeff) and HPR intern Lucy. We were continually sorting or swapping boxes during the rush, but we got everything processed and weighed without trouble. Nothing to complain about, especially with a 95 percent landfill diversion rate. Even the park rangers were impressed. I love it when their cleanup crew has nothing to do!
Happy Planet Running 