Rothbury tries to keep "green" theme

As Rothbury gets underway, the organizers don't want people to forget the festival's "environmental" theme.

The organizers say, there's no way getting around the fact that this is a festival, people are driving in and there is a lot of production involved, but they say they want this to be as "green" as a festival can get.

They looked at carbon-offsetting, but because there were no wind farms available, they decided to give back to the community in other ways. One of those community projects involves solar panels at Shelby High School. The panels are being installed on the roof of the building. They will absorb the sun's heat and energy and convert it into electricity.

A non-profit group call Black Rock Solar, along with local company, Bauer Power, will oversee the project. The school will save about $90 dollars a month in energy costs.

In addition to the solar panels, festival organizers are trying to be "green" on the festival grounds by developing a "waste reclaimation program". All of the plastic cups and items you would normally get at a concert for a drink, or a plate or cutlery are 100-percent plant based. So, everything is composted on site. The lighting is also run on bio-diesel fuel and there are solar recharge stations for cell phones.

Festival organizers say this is a huge music festival, but one with a purpose. They want people to enjoy the entertainment and do it in a environmentally-friendly way.