U2 360 Tour has Environmental Aims

Irish rock band U2’s current global tour in support of their new album is one with an environmental theme, in that the band intends offsetting all CO2 emissions generated during it.  Amongst the policies that could be implemented at some point is a 50 cent surcharge on all tickets and it is understood that the U2 360 tour– which extends to 18 months in duration - surpasses all previous eco-friendly travelling musical packages in its depth and scope.

U2 360 Tour

The U2 360 tour was organised by Live Nation, who subcontracted the environmental elements of it out to American firm MusicMatters. 

“We identified areas [where] the tour could first and foremost reduce its environmental impact without compromising the quality of the fan experience”, the president/founder of MusicMatters, Michael Martin, commented.

“We are now in the process of implementing these recommendations with Live Nation.  Next we will announce a customized U2 U2-360° Tour offset strategy, reflecting the band's robust social change commitment, to offset the remaining tour emissions.”

U2’s Carbon Footprint

A key role for MusicMatters will be to chart U2’s carbon footprint across the tour.  This, according to UK firm Carbonfootprint.com, could equate to the footprint associated with flying a return trip to Mars.  

In terms of carbon offsets, the same organisation has estimated that U2 would have to plant over 20,000 trees to bring the impact of its concerts on the environment back to equilibrium.

Environmental Technologies and Measures

The US 360 tour arrives in the US in the autumn and here, it is expected that the band will call on fans to car-share when attending concerts, and/or to favour the transport network over their own vehicles, to save on emissions.

No specific information has been released on exactly what environmental technologies and measures are being implemented as U2 tour the world.  However, they are understood to include some degree of photovoltaic energy to power up elements of the stage production, and biofuels in the cars used to drive the band and other key tour figures around.