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Duluth, MN – City officials call the city’s waterfront a major tourism draw.

“An estimated one million people use the Lakewalk on an annual basis,” Duluth’s Mayor, Don Ness, said.

“We also have to deal with the mounds of trash, virtually a mountain of trash that could be left if we didn’t manage it properly,” DyAnn Andybur, Duluth’s energy coordinator, said.

The current cans require weekly trash pickup. But announced today, through a $41,000 Grant from the Department of Natural Resources, new, environmentally cleaner models will soon take their place.

“Finding these sorts of win-win solutions is a great benefit to the taxpayers of Duluth and to our Duluth environment,” Ness said.

The compactors are already found at University of Minnesota-Duluth and can hold up to five times more than normal containers. This means there will be a less pickup and reduced costs for Duluth.

“75 percent less to handle the costs to handle garbage coming out of a system like this than the standard style of garbage,” said Tom Kasper, who works for Duluth Park Maintenance.

The compactors run on solar power.  “During the day, during sunshine and cloudy days and it will have a reserve to run on for weeks,” Andybur said.

And, they know when they’re full.

“It sends an electronic message to city staff alerting them that they’re full,” Ness said.

Ten units will be placed out next spring. Mayor Ness says they’re a sound economic investment.

“But it’s also going to result in cleaner parks in all the times between when city staff can be there,” Ness said.

The grant comes from the DNR’s Solar Legacy Grant Fund. City officials estimates the compactors will reduce the about CO2 released by nine tons.

See the Article or watch reporter Jacob Kittilstad

Read the following related articles:

• Read the TreeHugger.com article
• Read the Duluth News Tribune article
  

Halifax, CANADA – A new green initiative was launched on September 9, 2010 at Nova Scotia’s most visited destination — the Halifax waterfront.

Waterfront Development Corporation (WDC), Nestlé Waters Canada, and RRFB Nova Scotia announced the Halifax waterfront public spaces recycling program, which is the first of its kind in Atlantic Canada. The initiative involves a usage study and incorporates new technology.

Public spaces recycling captures the last mile of recyclables — items normally collected through Nova Scotia’s deposit-refund and curbside recycling programs but left by consumers in areas such as parks, streetscapes, and other public spaces.

Four stream receptacles, manufactured by BigBelly Solar, are located along the Halifax Harbourwalk, from the ferry terminal to Tall Ships Quay. The eco-friendly receptacles feature a solar powered waste compactor that reduces collection frequency by up to 80 percent, saving time, money and reducing pick-up emissions.

“The Halifax waterfront is an ideal location to launch our new clean, green initiative,” says Colin MacLean, president and CEO, Waterfront Development Corporation. “The program will enhance visitor experiences by making recycling and waste management more convenient. This partnership will set a strong example for waterfronts and communities nation wide.”

The program targets waste, recyclables, paper and organics. Considered one of the greenest initiatives in Canada, it aligns with aggressive Halifax Regional Municipality by-laws and reinforces Nova Scotia’s reputation as a leader in recycling.

“Nova Scotia has long been recognized as a leader in waste diversion,” says Sterling Belliveau, Minister of Environment. “Effective source separation programs such as this will help us achieve our goal of having one of the cleanest and most sustainable environments by 2020, making life better for Nova Scotia families.”

The partners will fund the cost of the new bin systems that were set up in August through StewardEdge, a leading national recycling consultant.

The three-month study phase aims to change behavior in the most challenging realm for waste separation compliance — public spaces. It also includes bin signage and public education.

Waste audits will be conducted to measure the effectiveness with results of the pilot project being forwarded to the Nova Scotia Environment Department.

The Canadian beverage industry and Quebec launched this program in 2008. This particular public spaces recycling methodology is achieving recovery rates as high as 97 percent for items such as glass, aluminum, plastic and paper.

“It is our objective to collect 100 percent of the plastic beverage containers we produce,” says John Zupo, president, Nestlé Waters Canada. “If the results we’ve seen in Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba are any indication, the introduction of this kind of public spaces recycling in Nova Scotia will go a long distance towards helping us to achieve that goal.”

See the Article

See Related MetroNews Article

See the Followup Article

BigBellies Invade Downtown

Portland, OR – On the other side of the Willamette, a different use for solar has been quickly spreading in an unsuspecting place – the garbage. BigBelly Solar’s BigBelly trash can uses solar power to compact garbage, and the receptacles are silently replacing traditional trash cans downtown. Driving the movement is Greg Goodman, president of City Center Parking, whose family owns 25 blocks of Downtown Portland property.

Goodman first spotted the BigBelly in Boston, and after researching how they worked, decided to import them to Portland. Their most notable benefit over traditional trash cans is how they double as compactors – since they can store more, they need to be emptied only one-fifth as frequently as typical cans, reducing fuel consumption and vehicle exhaust.

Compressing trash also leads to less garbage spilling out over full cans. “Especially the ones closer to the river, and especially in the summer when there’s a lot of people going to events, garbage tends to overflow and get blown into the drainage system,” said Megan Doern, spokeswoman for the Portland Business Alliance. “This thing can hold so much trash that overflow isn’t a problem.” The BigBelly units also offer a way for streetside recycling – with typical receptacles, there’s no way for pedestrians to recycle cans.

The cans are funded by business sponsorships sold through a nonprofit set up by Goodman. “There’s nobody who makes any money,” Goodman said. “The hit rate for people wanting to do it is very high.” According to Doern, 27 BigBelly units are in service now, and Goodman says 17 more are on the way. His goal is to eventually replace all of downtown’s 150+ garbage cans with BigBelly solar compactors.

Beyond that, Goodman has grander plans to make Portland’s sanitation operation even more environmentally friendly. “Ideally,” he said, “when we have them all throughout the city, they’re capable of being hooked up to a city system that will tell the waste hauler which ones need to be picked up so they don’t have to stop all the time.”  [Learn about the CLEAN wireless monitoring + notification system ].

Current BigBelly Locations in Downtown Portland:

• Melvin Mark Properties (4 locations)
• City Center Parking (6 locations)
• Clean & Safe District (2 locations)
• Northwest Natural Gas
• Gerding Edlen (2 locations)
• TMT Development (2 locations)
• Hoffman Construction
• Hotel Lucia-Aspen Investments
• Portland General Electric (4 locations)
• Qwest Communications (2 locations)
• Lease Crutcher Lewis (2 locations)

See the Article and Complete List of Locations