City partners to eliminate waste at events

As event season blossoms in Eugene, thousands of community members and visitors gather to enjoy the arts, entertainment, and sporting events each weekend. While vibrant and enjoyable, these events have traditionally generated significant excess waste due to single-use plates, bowls, cups and utensils. To address this wasteful challenge, the City of Eugene and Lane County have introduced the Sustainable Events Services (SES) program.

The SES program, a collaboration between the City of Eugene Waste Prevention Program, Waste Wise Lane County, and Action Rent-All & Events offers a sustainable alternative to single-use dishware for public events with more than 250 attendees. This initiative provides event planners and food vendors with reusable plates, bowls, cups, forks, spoons, knives, and water refill stations, aiming to reduce both costs and waste.

The program was first piloted in 2022 at the Eugene Riverfront Festival during the World Athletic Championships. Since then, the SES program has been continuously refined and promoted to event producers across Lane County, and in February 2024, the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW) conference utilized the SES program, showcasing its effectiveness and appeal.

With the event season underway, the SES program made significant impacts at the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Celebration and the Wildflower & Music Festival. By adopting reusable dishware, these events drastically reduced waste otherwise destined for landfills.

Event planners interested in utilizing the SES program can reserve reusable dishware for a fee that often undercuts the cost of disposable alternatives. This initiative not only supports environmental sustainability but also offers a financially viable option for large public events.

For more information or to reserve dishware, event planners can email [email protected] or visit the WasteWise Lane County event resources page.

This work is aligned with the City's broad effort toward Strategic Plan goals working to address urgent community needs to advance climate action and community resilience and to improve support for the local business environment.

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