The Epic Races Detroit Women’s Half Marathon took place on Belle Isle last Sunday, and for a while I thought the promised rain just might, maybe, possibly, hold off. Nope! It crept gradually in during the event, and while the Green Team stayed (mostly) dry via raincoats and canopies, everything we handled got nice and wet. Such is life in the trash business!
Despite the rain, the runners were smiling! And why not? They just got a run in!
While the rain wasn’t exactly welcome, it did provide a significant benefit in a sharply reduced number of yellow jackets buzzing around. Which allowed the Green Team to manage the waste, in particular the fruit smoothie cups, with minimal interference.
The main station was near the food tents, with satellite stations in the adult beverage area, at the walkway to the parking lot, and next to the post-race smoothie tent. With over 1,000 athletes getting a free smoothie, it certainly got business. Individual All Waste boxes also were placed by the Water Monster at the finish line, in the kitchen tent, and by another vendor truck. Thanks to our “rovers” (see below), none of them overflowed or got overly messy. Whew!
I was so busy I forgot to take a photo of our Zero Waste Station, so here’s another one of happy finishers.
Total waste was up over 75 percent from last year and the highest since 2018, with the recycling total more than doubling. Higher attendance contributed, as did the smoothies on top of Epic’s standard breakfast fare. Compost was up over 50 percent. Total landfill diversion, at just under 95 percent, was up from last year and in line with averages.
The smoothie cups had to be washed out after the event so we could recycle them (and yes, we did). Hoping they can be compostable in subsequent years. And the specialty waste – plastic bags, small plastics, disposable gloves –had to be dried out. So fewer pests vs. longer processing time is a tradeoff we had to accept. And the aid station bags appeared at takedown, so they required post-race sorting. Fortunately they were mostly cups, and Abby and I got it done relatively quickly the day after.
Abby takes on the aid station cups.
Landfill was a lot of wet contaminated plastic, along with the smoothie spoons, which being a 50/50 mix of standard plastic and bioplastic, unfortunately cannot be either recycled or composted. I pointed this out to the company providing the smoothies.
Green Team staff was myself and Abby, but Epic Races staffer Cole showed up to help, along with his friend Aiden. Serving as “rovers,” they swapped out All Waste boxes as they got full, allowing us to stay on top of the rush. They were a huge help.
On the unpleasant side, the smoothie truck left behind a large, heavy bag of mixed trash I had been unaware of. Its weight of over 50 lbs. was mainly food waste, so I processed it rather than find a dumpster for it. Another indication that Green Team communication with vendors, especially first-time vendors, needs to be much more careful.
Overall, another successful Zero Waste effort on beautiful Belle Isle!
