More than 200,000 music lovers at Glastonbury are being provided with free, fresh drinking water by Bristol Water teams, all without using plastic bottles.
Bristol Water has set up hundreds of free water refill points across the vast 1,500-acre site.
Additionally, the company’s free-to-use ‘Water Bar’, located near the Woodsies stage, is expected to serve thousands of festival goers who bring their reusable bottles.
This initiative supports Glastonbury’s ban on single-use plastic bottles, which has been in place since 2019, and helps achieve the organisers’ goal of making the event one of the most environmentally conscious in the world.
This commitment also aligns with Pennon Group’s environmental promise, which includes an ambitious plan to reduce carbon emissions and champion sustainability.
Huge increase in demand
With Worthy Farm set to grow to the size of a small city – more than twice the population of Bath – planning has been underway since early this year to cope with an up-to-six times increase in demand for water during this world-famous event.
Sam Bottomley, Bristol Water’s Head of Network Operations, said: “We’re pleased to again be providing fresh, clean water for the hundreds of thousands of people – festival goers, crew, volunteers, and emergency services – who all make Glastonbury such an iconic event.
“Re-zoning such a large amount of water requires months of planning, and I’d like to thank all of our teams for their hard work.”
‘Delighted to be supporting Glastonbury again’
To help cope with this peak in demand, over 23 Bristol Water staff have been working around the clock over recent months to ensure all water services on and away from the site remain seamless throughout.
The network is continuously monitored by Bristol Water teams for the festival’s duration.
Susan Davy, Chief Executive, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting Glastonbury again in what looks to be a beautifully sunny few days ahead.
“Our teams have planning this for months – and we’re well prepared for a truly brilliant weekend.”
Working collaboratively
Bristol Water aims to work collaboratively with the communities it serves on initiatives, such as its Water Bar and Refill Bristol.
This work has also included introducing water fountains free to use in its supply area.
Bristol Water supplies fresh drinking water to around 1.2m people living in Bristol and the surrounding areas.
It is part of Pennon Group, a British environmental utility infrastructure company based in Exeter, Devon.
For further information and water-saving ideas, see www.bristolwater.co.uk