Massive Attack’s climate action concert in Bristol last summer resulted in “unprecedented” reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

The 25th August, 2024 Bristol Downs event trialling Massive Attack’s ACT 1.5 decarbonisation measures, including a 100% battery-powered production, 100% vegan catering and extra public transportation, was found to have reduced emissions related to power by 98%, food and catering by 89%, equipment management by 70% and artist travel by 73%.

The report by Norwich-based Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research also found that while travel emissions were reduced by 32% overall, the 5% of the audience who travelled by plane to the concert generated 64% of the audience travel-related greenhouse gas emissions. “There is some evidence to suggest that greater travel for live shows is increasing while artists visit fewer locations”, the report reads. “This is a challenging area for artists with international fanbases to manage — but an increasing trend towards international travel by air and longer distance in-country by, typically fossil fuel, cars for live music is not compatible with aligning the sector to the Paris Agreement.”

“If fans are encouraged to tour the world to see their favourite artists this sector can simply forget about hitting any emissions reductions targets, let alone Paris 1.5 compatibility”, Robert “3D” Del Naja said in a press statement. “There’s a huge question now for tour planning, but also for media and promoter marketing campaigns high on the glitz of epic summer tours that normalise leisure aviation.”

The report adds, “Carbon offsetting for flights is not sufficiently credible as a mitigation approach and the aviation sector is at least a decade away from offering commercial low carbon flights”. Massive Attack do not include “offsetting” measures as part of their decarbonisation strategies.

Del Naja and Grant “Daddy G” Marshall will be continuing their ACT 1.5 work with their upcoming London festival headline date. They’ll lead a 100% battery-powered event on 6th June as past of LIDO Festival at Victoria Park.

Del Naja recently told NME that Massive Attack turned down a performance slot at Coachella 2025 over the festival’s environmental impact. 

Read the complete Tyndall Centre ACT 1.5 report here.