Wow, a gorgeous day for Shamrocks & Shenanigans! How did that happen?
Not complaining, and neither were the runners, who came out to enjoy the sunshine and a morning 5K. And there just might have been beer available at Conor O’Neill’s afterward, based on the cups that ended up in our Zero Waste stations.
Our staffed station was set up in the center of the parking lot off Ashley St. just past the post-race water and food tables. Along the central strip of the parking lot were several trash cans, which we covered and placed All Waste boxes on top of or next to. These all worked well, with very little litter on the ground in the parking lot. We also swept Ashley St. near the start/finish line before and after the race.
Ice cream – always a good excuse to go run!
Main sources of waste were cardboard, plastic water bottles, cups from coffee shops, Conor O’Neill’s, and the aid station, and food waste (banana peels and bagels) and some ice cream cups given out to the kids after their 1K event. We also collected some snack bags, race bibs, hand warmers, small plastics, and shamrock decorations, all of which will go to TerraCycle.
Everything went smoothly, and ended up with under a half pound of landfill and a 99 percent diversion rate. Once again, we achieved the single baggie o’ trash!
Total waste was up from 2024, with more cardboard and including the aid station cups, which weren’t covered last year. Waste was in line with 2023 totals.
Thanks to Liz as always for her help, and to volunteer Amber!
Happy Planet Running 