Protecting resources and avoiding waste
Reducing and avoiding waste is very important to us. As with many issues around sustainability, this can only be done together.
In recent years we have managed to reduce the packaging of finisher and helper shirts by 90%. Leftover clothing (such as helper and finisher shirts) has always not been thrown away, but donated to aid projects for needy children, e.g. in Rwanda and Zimbabwe.
The starter bags for participants are designed for multiple uses and made from durable material. The bottles on the bike course are, of course, reusable and a popular souvenir for many guests and participants. On the running course and at the finish line, we use paper cups that can be recycled more easily than the single-use plastic cups still found at similar events today.
Additionally, we have developed a detailed waste management concept with our partner hofmann denkt, which is applied during the DATEV Challenge Roth. On the EXPO grounds, we will have roll-off compactors with lifting-tipping devices for event waste and paper. These will be emptied daily by hofmann denkt, allowing us to keep the trash cans in the Triathlon Park continuously empty. Over 100 trash cans for food waste and event trash will be distributed throughout the area. Event waste will be processed by hofmann denkt through a certified pre-treatment facility according to GeWAbfV.
hofmann denkt also supports us in sustainability efforts on the course. The night before the race, our partner "hofmann denkt" cleans the bike course completely, providing the athletes with the best possible track.
For the first time in 2024, the start and end of the littering zones will be marked by specially labeled trash cans from hofmann denkt. This greatly facilitates post-event cleanup. Several "trash teams" will handle the cleanup immediately after the event, ensuring that the cheering zones and all areas around the course are quickly freed from trash.
We have been appealing to all our trade fair exhibitors for years to also take the topic of the environment and sustainability very seriously and to do without plastic and other unnecessary packaging as far as possible.
The starter bag is now digital. This means that there will no longer be any paper or plastic flyers in the start bag (high-quality gifts from our partners and sponsors for athletes will, of course, still be in it).
All cheering materials handed out to spectators on race day have been made completely sustainable since 2021, e.g. the popular green clapping cards are made from 100% corn starch.
All signage is made of wood and is reused to a large extent each year, as are blow-ups, banners and flags.
For several years, we have eliminated plastic tableware at the helper party as well as during the Bernbach Pasta Party in favor of reusable stainless steel plates and cutlery. In the future, disposable tableware will also be dispensed with in the beer gardens in the Triathlon Park.
