Bay Area concerts getting greener

Even live music is going green.

The Bay Area office for Live Nation, an entertainment venue management company formerly known as Bill Graham Presents that promotes live concerts worldwide, has initiated a program that is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, energy use and waste generated by six of its local venues, which draw more than 1 million concert goers each year.

The program will be implemented at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View; Sleep Train Pavilion in Concord; and the Fillmore, the Warfield, Punch Line Comedy Club and Cobb's Comedy Club, all in San Francisco.

Live Nation SF is looking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by providing upgraded parking for hybrid cars and cars with four or more passengers at Shoreline and Sleep Train. It will also purchase carbon offset credits to compensate for emissions generated by fans, employees and artists who attend events.

To reduce power consumption by 10 percent, Live Nation SF will install energy-saving lighting and has already replaced 1,700 bulbs. It will also reduce water use by up to 5 million gallons per year by putting in a new lawn care system and upgrading kitchen equipment.

Lee Smith, chairman of Live Nation SF, said that the company started planning the program last summer and that about 95 percent of the initiatives are in place.

"My biggest concern was to not be fashionable but do what needs to be done," Smith said.

Although some of the initiatives, like replacing the lighting, will cost Live Nation SF money up front, other initiatives are allowing it to save. For instance, composting and recycling at the Warfield could result in an annual savings of $17,000 in waste removal. Live Nation SF has not calculated the full cost of implementing the program.

Of the estimated 800 tons of waste that all six venues now produce, about 223 tons are being recycled. Live Nation SF will try to bring that up to 280 tons, Smith said.

If successful, the program may be replicated in some of the company's 160 other venues globally. Last year, Live Nation organized 26,000 events in 18 countries, drawing nearly 60 million fans.