Coldplay

Coldplay Kicks Off Eco-Friendly Tour in Costa Rica

The British rock band has vowed to create its first-ever eco-friendly concert tour

NBCUniversal Media, LLC

In 2019, Coldplay announced they were taking a step back from touring because of the negative impact concerts have on the environment. Now in 2022, the popular British rock band is hitting the road again for a new, eco-friendly tour that started in Costa Rica on March 18.

The band has vowed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50 percent compared to its 2016 tour and avoid fossil fuels wherever possible. Frontman Chris Martin told Telemundo's Randy Serrano that they chose to begin the tour in Costa Rica for a specific reason.

"Costa Rica is so progressive environmentally, and that felt like a really cool place for us to start a tour, which we're trying to make more environmentally friendly," Martin said.

The concerts will be powered by solar tiles located on the stadium floor. Coldplay has also partnered with BMW to develop the first-ever mobile rechargeable show battery, which is made from recycled BMW i3 batteries and can be charged with recycled cooking oil.

The fans will also be playing a huge part in this new endeavor. With a kinetic floor, the concert-goers movement will be converted into energy. The option to ride electricity-generating bikes during the show will also be available to fans.

"I mean, the crowds are always giving us energy, and now they're literally giving it," Jonny Buckland, co-founder and guitarist of Coldplay, said.

When possible, the band has also vowed to use electric vehicles for ground travel, fly on commercial flights and pay a surcharge to use fuel that is made from renewable waste materials.

The confetti at Coldplay concerts will now be 100 percent biodegradable, and fans are encouraged to bring reusable bottles to drink out of. In addition to all of these changes, fans who use low-carbon alternatives to get to a concert will be given a discount code.

Concerts typically produce a large carbon footprint and cause a massive amount of plastic waste. This led Coldplay to step back and look at how they themselves were impacting the environment.

"It's all very well to point fingers at other people, but we need to be doing our best now," Martin said. "And so it's been really interesting and exciting and extremely challenging, and we are still only about 50 percent there. You know, we have a long way to go, but we're trying."

According to Reverb.org — a nonprofit environmental organization that partners with musicians, festivals and venues to create eco-friendly events — Billie Eilish, Maroon 5, Dead & Company and Dave Matthews Band are additional musicians and bands who have taken a stand against climate change by altering their concerts from the inside out. The nonprofit says its programs have eliminated more than 180,000 tonnes of CO2 and 4 million single-use water bottles.

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