Cans, Bottles, and Rock and Roll April 14, 1996 - Green Peace Quarterly By Baker Rorick It's 5:00 p.m. on a balmy summer evening and a group of twenty road-weary but enthusiastic fans of the band called Phish are sitting on the sidewalk in front of a 20,000 seat concert pavilion for their nightly "G-Crew" meeting. "The plan tonight is to gather as many bottles and cans as possible, label the bags, and put them in one place for the local recycling company to pick them up," explains Lisa Valdez, one of the two G-Crew organizers who travel with the Phish tour. Greenpeace organized the innovative G-Crew recycling program to help the environmentally conscious band Phish, with the help of its many fans, step lightly while it tours. Phish now sponsors the G-Crew, which was first formed at an Earth Day concert last year. In return for picking up cans and bottles after the show, the volunteers receive free tickets to the concert. In big venues the fifteen to twenty volunteers collect more than a ton of recyclables a night. The recyclables G-Crew has picked up at more than 120 Phish shows weigh more than the total weight of the band's equipment. "What Phish, Greenpeace, and the G-Crew provide is a positive alternative to trash for concert goers," said Greenpeace Tour Project staffer Mike Hayes, who has toured with Phish for three years. "The G-Crew is a perfect example of rewarding effort with positive paybacks. Participants contribute to the scene in positive ways, breeding consciousness and educating people." Phish picks up the tab on Dumpster and pickup charges, plus the free tickets and some financial support for the volunteer organizers. It's a small price, according to band manager John Paluska. "We do everything we can to facilitate G-Crew as a way to minimize our impact on the local communities and take responsibility for our tour," he said. "It works out to be a win-win situation for everyone." Last summer, Phish worked with Greenpeace to promote solar power. They used Greenpeace's mobile solar power generator, Cyrus, to power their instruments for a concert, including drummer Jon Fishman's amplified vacuum cleaner, which he plays as an instrument on some songs. Article © 1996 Green Peace Organization