Wacken Open Air takes place on green meadows and we want it to stay that way in the future! We therefore ask all guests to show consideration for the environment and to reduce the ecological footprint of the festival together with us. Furthermore, we want to ensure that everyone feels equally comfortable at Wacken Open Air.
For us, sustainability is a continuous process that is integrated into all workflows and departments in order to fully address the issue. Over the past few years, we have therefore intensively analysed the various areas in which we operate and have identified four focus topics on which our measures for more sustainability are aimed and on which we are working together with the entire crew: Nutrient management, energy supply, mobility and well-being. We are loud at work to make a change and want to grow and develop Green Wacken together with you.
On this page you will find an overview of the measures we have implemented so far and news for Wacken Open Air 2024.
Our #greenwacken campaign has been running since 2019. On the day of departure, you can post a picture of your tidy campsite on Instagram with the hashtag #greenwacken and the year. We will then raffle off great prizes among all environmentally conscious campers.
The following prizes have been raffled off in 2024:
1 x pitch ‘Graveyard’ in Residenz Evil incl. festival visit for 1 person
1 x plot in Bauer Uwes Garten incl. 1 x Metal Mobile WC and festival visit for 1 person
3 x W:O:A tent in the Te.N.T. area incl. festival visit for 1 person
5 x 100€ voucher worth 100€ for our online shop
5 x sustainable merchandise packages
5 x 50 m² in the Wacken Community Rainforest in Peru
All winners have already gotten a notification. The raffle is over.
Every visitor receives a trash bag at our wristband exchange. We ask you to dispose of your trash in this bag. This alone will be a huge contribution to reducing the burden on our employees and the impact on the environment.
After our site cleaning team has finished its work, all the areas are driven over with two large 6-metre magnets to collect all the metallic objects left behind. This ensures that the farmers can cultivate their land without any problems afterwards.
In our opinion, leftover and unused food should not be thrown away. That is why we have set up collection points together with Foodsharing, where guests and food retailers can donate their leftover food. The food is then passed on to people in need and is not wasted.
Our colleagues from Foodsharing will also be walking around the camping areas throughout the festival and collecting leftover food from you.
This campaign will also be implemented together with all partners who offer food at the festival. They will also have the opportunity to hand in leftover food so that it does not go to waste.
After the festival is before the clean-up. As soon as the last of you have left the site, our gigantic site cleaning team starts the site clean-up mission. This is where all the items left behind are collected.
Access to clean drinking water is a human right and is particularly important on long and often warm festival days with lots of headbanging. That's why there are drinking water taps throughout the event site where you can get fresh water for free. In addition, you receive a foldable drinking bottle free of charge at the wristband exchange, which you can take with you onto the event site.
In the coming years, we will continue to gradually switch our merchandise range to sustainable materials. This includes, for example, switching to products made from organic cotton, where we will achieve a 25% share this year. You can find an overview of our sustainable merchandise items here.
In the backstage area, all partners, service providers and employees are required to separate their waste in the designated containers (cardboard and paper, light packaging and plastics, glass, leftover food and residual waste).
In addition, pilots for waste separation were also carried out in the guest areas in 2024. In the Camper Park and in Residenz Evil we offer guests the opportunity to dispose of their waste at the stations set up for this purpose.
In the backstage area, all partners, service providers and employees are required to separate their waste in the containers provided (cardboard and paper, lightweight packaging and plastics, glass, leftover food and residual waste).
In addition, waste separation pilots will also be carried out in the guest areas in 2024. In the Camper Park and Residenz Evil, we offer guests the opportunity to dispose of their waste at the stations set up for this purpose.
For many years now, you have had the opportunity to donate your returnable bottles and cans to the Wacken Foundation. This is possible both in the rubbish bins labelled for this purpose at the main entrances and at the volunteers on site. The volunteers also drive around the camping areas and collect returnable bottles and cans.
Together with the organisations Hanseatic Help, Engel in den Straßen and Metality, we collect tents, sleeping bags and sleeping mats that have been left behind on the day of departure. The organisations will then ensure that the items are passed on to people in need. There are also collection points at various locations on the site where you can drop off your camping equipment if you don't want to take it home with you.
With the constantly growing number of special camping offers, we want to ensure that tents and accommodation are reused at several festivals. A win-win situation - you don't have to worry about anything, nothing is left behind on the festival site and the accommodation can be used much more sustainably. You can find an overview of all our special camping offers here.
During the festival, trash mobiles will be permanently driving around the site. Together with Werkstätten Rendsburg-Fockbek we will collect full trash bags directly from you at the campsite. So if you see a trash mobile, it's the perfect opportunity to get rid of your trash! You can also get new trash bags free of charge at trash mobiles.
Water-saving vacuum toilets are an alternative to conventional toilets as we know them from home. These only require a fraction of the water of a normal toilet. We currently use these primarily backstage for the crew and artists, but there are also plenty of vacuum toilets available for guests at Residenz Evil.
Together with our partner Utopia Camping, we make it possible for guests of the Te.N.T. area to order sustainable camping equipment before the festival. The equipment can easily be picked up on site at the Utopia sales point.
In 2022, we used a 90 kW fuel cell with green hydrogen on the festival site for the first time to supply electric charging stations for the crew. In 2023, two smaller fuel cells were used to power the belt distribution at the Camping Plaza. We are pleased that we had a fuel cell on site again this year, which once again supplied part of the band distribution at the Camping Plaza with green electricity.
We also want to use the sun to generate as much green electricity as possible. That's why in 2023, two solar panels supplied the office containers in the crew area with plenty of green power! In 2024, there will be new pilots with solar lighting masts set up on the site.
In the new Te.N.T. Area, we offer sleepboxes for hire where you can get all your electricity from a solar panel on the roof. You can find more information about the Te.N.T. Area here.
In 2024, floodlights on the Faster and Harder main stages will be replaced by energy-saving phosphor laser light sources. This will save approximately the annual energy consumption of a detached family home.
In 2024, the floodlights on the Faster and Harder main stages were replaced with energy-saving phosphor laser light sources. This saved approximately the annual energy consumption of a single-family home.
Every year we try to create clearer incentives for guests to travel by public transport. Probably the biggest incentive is the short distances to the campsites without a car directly at the event site. You don't even need a car here: you can lock up your valuables, get everything you need for your daily needs at the Farmers Market and even support the regional economy. But that's not all. If you're travelling by public transport, you'll have your own wristband exchange at the bus station.
In 2024, electric buses were used on the event site for the first time as shuttles for VIP guests, artists and press representatives.
For a festival the size of Wacken Open Air, a huge fleet of vehicles is needed in the background to set up and dismantle everything.
There are several electric cars in use on the site, which offer the crew a sustainable alternative to conventional cars. The electronically operated Gator commercial vehicles used on the festival grounds also offer a simple and practical alternative to cars. Last year, electric wheel loaders were used for the first time for work on the site. This is further expanded and tested annually. Last year we also expanded our e-bike fleet from 12 to 42. This means that the festival crew can move around the festival site in a relaxed manner by bike.
If you are arriving by bike, our huge bike parking lot offers a worthy home for your bike.
Since 2022, you have the option of offsetting your entire journey, and even more CO2 if you like, with a donation when you personalise your ticket. Together with Wilderness International, we have already protected an area in the Peruvian jungle that corresponds to the size of our infield and the Wacken Community Forest is growing. But even if you don't want to compensate, you can make a donation and receive a certificate with the exact coordinates of your protected forest area in return. Protect your piece of rainforest here.
In addition to the shuttle buses from Itzehoe train station, our travel partners offer a variety of options for sustainable group travel from many cities in Germany and countries in Europe and around the world.
Our shuttle buses, which will pick you up at the nearest train station in Itzehoe and take you with all your belongings to the festival site, offer another incentive to travel by public transport. From 2025, all ticket holders can use the shuttle buses free of charge throughout the entire festival week.
In 2022 and 2023, hydrogen buses were used and tested on the site as shuttles for VIP guests, artists and press representatives. The tests have shown that the buses can also withstand the conditions on agricultural land and offer a safe alternative to conventional buses.
Our festival is named after its place of origin and without the local service providers, the W:O:A would not be what it is today. We know our roots and are grateful for every contract we can award to another regional service provider to give something back to the local heroes.
In 2024 our campaign “Register and shine!” together with DKMS 10 years old. More than 11,700 Wacken fans have already registered with DKMS, 85 of whom were able to donate stem cells. You can find more information about our campaign with DKMS here.
In collaboration with Krombacher, we have brought the Growling Creatures to life. A band consisting of 7 endangered native animal species. At the W:O:A 23 we created the loudest growl in the world with your help and made a big wave for the Growling Creatures! The aim of the campaign is to collect donations for NABU for the protection of endangered native animal species. You can find more information about the campaign here.
Access to clean drinking water is a human right and is particularly important on long and often warm festival days with lots of headbanging. That's why there are drinking water taps throughout the event site where you can get fresh water for free. In addition, you will receive a foldable drinking bottle free of charge at the wristband exchange, which you can take with you onto the event site.
A new retreat has been created for the crew's well-being. Here, employees can enjoy snacks (including vegetarian and vegan options) and drinks, play a game of PlayStation or simply just rest their legs.
Together with the organisations Hanseatic Help, Engel in den Straßen and Metality, we collect tents, sleeping bags and sleeping mats that have been left behind on the day of departure. The organisations will then ensure that the items are passed on to people in need. There are also collection points at various locations on the site where you can drop off your camping equipment if you don't want to take it home with you.
Every year there is a team of pastoral workers on site. So if you feel uncomfortable, disoriented or overwhelmed - feel free to approach these people, they have an open ear for everyone and will do their best to help you!
The Wacken Foundation is our in-house charitable foundation to support the metal and hard rock scene. Through events such as the Wacken Music Camp, young talents and bands are to be motivated and sustainably supported. You can find more information about the Wacken Foundation here.
At the Wacken Open Air there is the Wacken Foundation Camp, where various charitable organisations can present themselves. You will find the Wacken Foundation Camp on the Camping Plaza.
In our Wheels of Steel Area, guests with disabilities have the opportunity to experience the W:O:A without restrictions like any other guest. Here you can enjoy barrier-free showers, toilets and a wide range of services such as a wheelchair repair service, barrier-free shops, etc. All information about the Wheels of Steel Area and inclusion can be found here.
Metal runs through our veins! As an Official W:O:A Bloodsponsor, all Wacken fans in Germany and Tyrol can get a kind of bonus booklet from a participating blood donation service and receive a free W:O:A Bloodsponsor shirt after the 6th donation. This is our way of encouraging people to donate blood. You can find more information about the W:O:A blood donation here.
