Women Run the D returned to Belle Isle this year on a beautiful morning for a 5K, 10K, and half marathon. The event spotlights women who have survived major health challenges, and it’s very much family-focused, with mothers and daughters running, and in at least one case, grandma as well!
The Green Team set up in the finish area near the food tents. In addition, we put unstaffed All Waste boxes by the Water Monster, at another busy corner of the finish area, and on top of a trash can by the fountain. We also put a couple in the kitchen area. As those were highly visible, they filled quickly and needed to be swapped often.
Olivia and Liz hard at work while race director Eva Solomon looks on.
The yellow jackets, a perennial problem at this race, were really numerous and a nuisance this year, so we had to be careful when collecting or sorting. No stings, however.
Total waste was up about 10 percent from last year, in line with increased attendance, so waste per 100 runners was about the same – 30.1 lbs. vs. 29.5 lbs. Compost made up about half the waste, with cardboard the next highest contributor. Landfill consisted of the usual suspects – tape, contaminated foil, diapers, ice cream wrappers, wet wipes, and greasy plastic popcorn bags.
Isn’t Zero Waste fun? Hailey sure thinks so!
A few miscellaneous notes:
- One of the Epic staffers prevented the park from putting out their own trash cans. Still, we had one “rogue trash can” which was brought to us near the end of the event. We also found quite a bit of race waste in the trash cans by the porta-potties. I recovered some, but not all, of it. Might be worth putting a station there next time, if we have enough team members to police that area, as it’s a bit of a walk away from the finish area.
- The aid station bags arrived after we’d done most of the takedown. That, along with the yellow jackets, made me decide to sort them after the race. We were able to weigh everything else there, except for the inevitable dribble of last-minute waste. Just as a note, the aid station cups filled an entire 96-gallon cart.
Thanks to interns Liz and Olivia, who made her Zero Waste event debut here! Thanks also to the Epic kitchen staff for using separate pails for disposable gloves and for greasy plastic popcorn bags. Thanks also to the finish line crew for keeping the plastic wrap from the medals free of other waste. Much appreciated!
Happy Planet Running 