Dear EarthTalk:

What are some ways music gear makers are going green?

Peter B., Groton, CT

Music gear production, from collecting materials, producing gear and packaging with excessive plastic, has numerous negative environmental effects. Collecting wood has led to overharvesting at an unsustainable rate, an increasingly urgent issue for forests and woodlands. Plastic and metal waste have risen, too. These issues have led many music gear makers to implement sustainable changes.

The good news is that some instrument producers have begun harvesting wood from dead or dying trees to prevent the overharvesting of rich woodlands, while others have shifted toward less-used “alternative tonewoods” like basswood and kaya. To decrease metal waste in sourcing for strings, makers are beginning to purchase strings in the form of rods.

Small changes are also happening in the production are

• Manufacturers have replaced traditional materials with eco-friendly options when producing the picks, straps and other accessories.
• It is now commonplace to find bioplastic or even shell for guitar picks and vegan leather for straps.
• String company Stringjoy now has a recycling program, encouraging players to mail back old strings to repurpose the material.

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When packaging manufactured goods, music gear makers have begun using paper tape, boxes and envelopes over the traditionally used plastic. Unique innovations have also made packaging greener, such as color-coding each guitar string and its packaging to avoid the environmentally harmful practice of purchasing an entirely new set of guitar strings when only one needs a replacement.

Together these changes have led to a plethora of significant positive outcomes. Increased use of alternative wood sources has caused a notable decrease in pressure on certain wood species commonly used for instruments like mahogany, rosewood and spruce. Moreover, changes made in packaging and material collection have reduced the vast amounts of plastic and metal waste from entering landfills or oceans. Exemplified by the color-coded guitar strings, unique innovations have also made an impact, with the director of product management at music instrument company D’Addario, Brian Vance, commenting that color-coding has eliminated total packaging mass by 70 percent.

More can still be done. Companies advocate for government policies cementing environmentally friendly decisions made by manufacturers, or work toward simpler changes by implementing more recycling programs for their customers. Ultimately, strategic efforts have significantly boosted the sustainability of music gear production, proving that these efforts must be continued and expanded.

CONTACTS

• The rise of sustainable guitars, frontiergroup.org/articles/the-rise-of-sustainable-guitars-how-an-industry-is-innovating-to-save-our-forests.

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