Grandma's Marathon takes place along lake superior, which showcases one of the most scenic and pristine stretches of coastline in the Upper Great Lakes.

One of the top priorities of marathon organizers is to put the earth first by running greener and more sustainable events.

"One of our key features is you get to run along Lake Superior and we know its a beautiful city and we want to help keep it that way," said Alivia Nelson, Program Director for Grandma's Marathon.

Have you ever wondered what happens to the tons of discarded clothing at grandma's marathon, or the unused food and leftover heat sheets?

How about the finisher medals that go unclaimed?

Marathon officials understand each year that the race and weekend festivities have a huge impact on the community, so they want it to be a positive one.

Each year the event's approach to shrinking each runner's carbon footprint encompasses transportation, food services and waste removal. 

So that means you'll be seeing a lot of green stations and you can be apart of the initiative even if you're not running.

"You can help us by putting your waste in the correct bin. We have different parteners that are helping to staff those whether its Keep Duluth Clean or the Equal Rotary are going to be out there to help us minimize some of our contaminantion within our waste stream whether its compost or recycling," said Nelson.

To cut down on carbon emissions, runners will take the bus to the starting line. Other options include a complimentary bike valet to encourage people to leave the car at home and come down to their events on wheels.

Grandma's even uses green ways to keep runners and spectators hydrated.

Nelson says, "On the race course we source all of our water through water trucks or fire hydrants instead of using bottled product, which really helps cut down on the amount of waste we see out there."

Coca-Cola Beverages of Duluth helps marathons by providing water stations along the race. They use dasani's recyclable bottles that are made of 30% plant-based material.

To see the original report and read related stories, follow this link to the WDIO-TV website. https://www.wdio.com/news/grandmas-marathon-uses-green-initiatives/6143237/