FAIRFAX, Va. — While the music is blasting and drinks are pouring, waste can really pile up at concerts and festivals.
Typically, you see trash bins or blue recycle bins to dump used cups and plates. But at a recent festival in Fairfax, there was something different. A yellow and black bin directing people to drop their cups or food trays in, so that they can be sanitized and used again.
It's called the r Cup, by the company r World. The company specializes in reusable cups, plates, and dinnerware at live events, like concerts and festivals.
“r World has a wash hub facility in Washington, D.C. Where we’ll collect and take the used items back to the wash facility and we’ll clean and sanitized them," said r World marketing director Jessica Johnston.
Once the cups and dinnerware are cleaned and sanitized they get repackaged and sent to the next event. The reusables can be used up to 300 times, according to the company's website.
One estimate by the nonprofit, A Greener Festival, showed that live events in the U.S. can generate 53 tons of waste in a year.
Fairfax was one of the first places in Virginia to use r World at a live event. It was the vision of Maria Betancourt Reid, of Fairfax County Park Authority, to bring a more sustainable approach to the recent Earth Day Festival. She wanted to find a solution to cut back on waste, and said festival goers have really warmed up to the idea, especially when enjoying some of their favorite drinks.
“Most of all people were just excited that they aren’t going to end up in the trash,” Betancourt Reid said. “So a lot of excitement, especially for the beer. Beer is great, you know you get to enjoy it with out feeling guilty about the plastic,” she said.
Festival goers were seen dropping their used cups in the r Cup bins and emptying their food trays before putting them in the bin to be sanitized and used again.
R World said the reusable cups and dinnerware are made in America to reduce shipping distance and carbon footprint. The cups and dinnerware are eventually upcycled to into other products.