Camp Trash Rules

• There is NO COMMUNAL TRASH CAN.
• The camp dump is ONLY for the kitchen and shared camp infrastructure.
• MOOP and TRASH is ALL “PACK IT IN, PACK IT OUT”. Everything needs to leave the Playa with us, full stop!
• All campers and/or pods must collect their own trash and pack it out!
• Burner Express Bus has space for 2-3 bags of trash per passenger. DO NOT not leave your trash bags on the bus! Take your trash off the bus and dispose properly.
• DO NOT THROW ANY TRASH ON THE ROAD BACK TO RENO - even if it stinks and is disgusting, WE MUST take all our trash back to Reno and dispose of it properly!
  • This last point is critical for Burning Man to continue as an event in Nevada, this is not a joke.

COMPOSTING ON PLAYA

Even more exciting news – you can also compost on Playa! It’s a great way to reduce the amount of MOOP/trash you’ll have to carry back out with you after the event, especially because food scraps will otherwise get smelly, leaky, etc. Avoid all of that, and help our sustainability goals 😊 Before doing it you MUST read the instructions below to make sure you do it correctly.

1. Why composting?

• When you throw your food scraps in the trash, they end up in a landfill where they emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas. When you compost your food scraps, you turn them into healthy soil that not only helps grow new food without using chemical fertilizers, but also takes carbon out of the atmosphere and puts it to good use!

2. Planning Ahead

• Fruit stickers are just about the most annoying thing when it comes to compost. Pro-tip? If you’re bringing fresh fruit and veg to playa, take off stickers before you leave for Black Rock City!
• Teabags can be composted, but not if they have staples! If your are bringing tea bags to playa, try to plan ahead and only get staple-free tea bags.
• “Compostable” plastics or paper products of any kind are not accepted. Don’t bring them! We won’t take them! Always better to use reusables!
• If possible, transfer your food from its packaging to a reusable container before you come to Playa.

3. Dealing with Compost on Playa

• All compost has to be DRY before drop off – the compost camp will send all liquid and any contaminants back with you!
• At Kostume Kult, each POD will be provided with 1-2 burlap sacks to collect compost
• Put your burlap sack over a bucket to avoid any liquid leakage to the playa, this way extra liquid will escape, while keeping all the solid food scraps together in the burlap. For really juicy items, like watermelon, you can put them in a burlap sack and wring out the liquid over a bucket before leaving to dry
• Once all liquid is drained, move your burlaps to the dedicated compost drying area behind the Kostume Kult dumpster – lay your burlap sack on a tarp. It will dry there for 1-2 days before one of the camp’s compost/recycling shifts drops it off to the Compost Camp together the communal compost
• Make sure there are zero food stickers or other contaminants, * Keep your burlaps are only half-full for optimal drying
• Ensure absolutely no leakage on the playa

4. Compost Drop-Off Shift

• Do not use compostable bags, aka the green ones that are supposed to mimic plastic. We understand those are compostable in other places but the Compost Camp does not take any kind of compostable plastic. * Bring compost to Compost Camp drop off in a burlap sack and bucket – both burlap and the bucket will go back to the camp for next composting cycle
• Remember to be diligent about what goes in your composting – the Compost Camp will send all liquid and any contaminants back with you!
• When you arrive at the Compost Camp, you’ll be greeted by volunteers. Together you’ll pour out the compost, sort through it to check for contaminants, and then work together to dump it in the dumpster. This should take about 20 minutes. And that’s about it.