SolarVisionaries.Org:
Nice Cans…
December 21, 2009 06:00 AM
Budgets are tight… local cities and towns are trying desperately to find ways to cut budget without raising taxes, laying off workers, or cutting services. The solution… innovation of course. Check out how BigBelly Solar is saving municipal governments millions in an area that nobody else was thinking about – trash collection.
Powered 100% by solar, the BigBelly solar trash compactor has had implications way beyond just reducing the cost of paying trash collectors to empty cans that aren’t full and reducing the litter created by overfilled trash cans. In fact, cities who’ve adopted the BigBelly solar compactors have relieved traffic congestion, and smog while raising awareness of how solar power can save money well beyond just the costs of lighting or heating and cooling buildings.
How they work:
The BigBelly is a smart, self-powered robot that automatically compacts about 5 trash cans worth of trash into a single bag, saving about 4 out of 5 collection trips. When they’re close to full, the BigBelly sends off a text message to the local trash collectors telling them they need to come and empty them.
BigBelly’s technology is nothing we haven’t seen before, a simple solar panel at the top of the receptacle powers the compactor, and a sensor is installed that fires off the text message when the cans are close to getting full. What is really impressive about BigBelly is the impact their products are having on municipalities all over the United States. By reducing the amount of trash pickups in densely populated urban locations, BigBelly compactors are actually curbing emissions from the collection vehicles, freeing up traffic flow (ever been stuck behind a garbage truck in the city while they hurl bags in off the sidewalk?) and reducing the amount of innocent civilians exposed to the smell of open garbage trucks stopped in front of them in traffic. It’s a win-win all around.
Moreover, city governments are reporting that the reduced need for trash collection in their cities is helping them put those workers to better use, improving maintenance to public areas like parks and recreation facilities.