Transitioning Black Rock City Off of Fossil Fuels (OFF)
Imagine a city of 80,000 people leaving no trace of waste or emissions. This is the challenge at the heart of the Net Zero BRC initiative: Create a regenerative, carbon-neutral temporary community that not only meets our environmental goals but inspires others to rethink what’s possible on Earth, 365 days a year.
Part of Burning Man Project’s 2030 Environmental Sustainability Roadmap, the Net Zero goal is for BRC to achieve carbon neutrality, and foster a culture of collaboration and innovation.
As a donor-supported initiative, we aim to not only address the environmental impact of Black Rock City, but to also create a blueprint for large-scale temporary communities, energy use, waste management, and community collaboration, beyond Northern Nevada and everywhere.
Focus Areas of Net Zero BRC Impact
- Lead by Example: Transition Burning Man Project event operations in Black Rock City (BRC) off fossil fuels, and ecologically handle event waste;
- Participant Support: Support the participant community in BRC in scaling innovative solutions and collaborations;
- Resource Recovery and Reuse: Recover resources and leveraging infrastructure from BRC through year-round operations at Fly Ranch and on Northern Nevada properties;
- Cultural Activation: Support decarbonization and regenerative practices through the Regional Network and at official Burning Man events;
- Research and Develop Innovative Solutions: Establish partnerships to innovate, test, and scale emerging technologies and regenerative solutions.
Our Progress Toward 2030
Burning Man Project has made enormous strides transitioning Black Rock City operations off of fossil fuels:
- Storage: In 2024 and 2025 we deployed one of the largest temporary energy storage grids in the world, significantly reducing generator run-time and diesel fuel consumption for the event.
- Diesel: Throughout our grid, petroleum diesel has been replaced with R99 renewable diesel; we are testing renewable propane as cleaner alternatives.
- Solar: Multiple solar initiatives in BRC aim to strengthen grid resilience, reduce reliance on diesel, and support art installations with renewable, accessible power.
- Waste: Every year, we recover dozens of yards of BRC food waste and utilize the compost for local land projects.
- Education: We work and in hand with production partners and participants to scale regenerative practices within Black Rock City and offer these learnings to the world.
Learn more about this work and our successes below:
- 2024 Net Zero BRC Key Successes
- Net Zero BRC Initiative Overview
- 2024 Event Operations Key Takeaways
- 2024 Participant Contributors Key Takeaways
The future is ours. Join us in building a better tomorrow!
Collaborate to Achieve Net Zero
Black Rock City is a sandbox for innovation. We welcome collaborations with value-aligned organizations, vendors, and innovators who share our vision of an environmentally sustainable future.
- If you are a camp interested in providing a service that supports the goals of our sustainability roadmap, submit the Civic Support Camp interest form.
The Net Zero BRC initiative is funded through the generosity of impact-driven donors seeking to further a vision of a fossil-free future, with a dollar-for-dollar matching opportunity through the end of 2025.