Princeton's curbside foodwaste collection uses small rollout bins. I happened to encounter one of Central Jersey's trucks making its rounds the other day. The bins are emptied by hand, without any mechanical assist. Rollout bins are widely used in other communities for trash or recyclables, and in places like San Francisco, Seattle and Ann Arbor, MI, foodwaste is combined with yardwaste in a large rollout bin as well.
It's customary to give workers' backs a break by mounting a small hydraulic hook on the back of the truck. The worker rolls the bin up to the hook, which grabs the metal bar on the bin, lifts it up, gives it a shake and then eases it back down to the pavement.
Princeton's foodwaste bins are small, so most have loads light enough for the worker to deal with. But foodwaste is mostly water, and can be heavy if the bin is full. Maybe that's why the worker said he'd love to have one of those hooks. I priced them out once. It costs 3-5 thousand for a retrofit. Seems a small price to pay for saving a man's back.
No comments:
Post a Comment