We Launched Insomniac’s First Biofuel Conversion Program at EDC Las Vegas

Used cooking oil—you know, that grease left over after making bacon, or the stuff your chicken strips are fried in—can actually be very useful if recycled correctly.

The product of oil recycling is cleaner-burning biodiesel, a substance used in generators, vehicles, and other machinery to reduce harmful fossil fuel emissions. Many cities are now asking residents to donate oil to reduce dependence on traditional fuel sources. San Francisco, for example, has even adopted recycled cooking oil to power some of its public transportation.

Donating or reusing your cooking oil is not only the right thing to do; it also saves you from a pretty messy home disposal process. Aside from the mere gross factor, dumping the oil down your drain is very harmful to piping systems and sewage infrastructure.

So, for EDC Las Vegas 2016, we decided to try out a bit of oil recycling of our own as part of our Insomniac Cares initiative, the program behind the EDC Week Charity Auction and all charitable donations. With the help of Biotane Pumping, an oil recycling division of Coachella-based Imperial Western Products, we tried our hand at collecting used cooking oil from various frying locations around the festival.

Did you buy a funnel cake or corn dog at EDC, or maybe some chicken strips? The oil used to cook those food items likely ended up in the hands of Biotane, who then converted it into 491 gallons of top-grade biodiesel back at its facility and distributed it to various business recipients whose products run off the cleaner-burning product. Biotane also calculated that the biofuel created from EDC Las Vegas removed a total of 3.78 metric tons of smog emissions from the atmosphere! So, in case you were feeling any guilt about eating a bit of festival junk food, this should make you feel better.

Insomniac Cares is dedicated to making a positive impact in the communities where our events our held, and environmental sustainability is just one of the focuses of the broader initiative, which includes art, education, and health. Keep an eye out for further oil recycling at future Insomniac events, including Nocturnal Wonderland. With every festival bringing new and exciting environmental ideas to the “plate” (ahem), as well as improving on existing ones, it’s safe to say we’ll be seeing some even higher figures to come.