Vernon To Begin Automating Trash, Recyclables Collection - Courant.com

Vernon To Begin Automating Trash, Recyclables Collection - Courant.com: "Vernon To Begin Automating Trash, Recyclables Collection"


VERNON — - Automation is about to change the way trash and recyclable items are collected in town.

Starting in May, the department of public works will begin using automated equipment instead of brute strength to collect trash and recyclables at curbside.

Mayor Jason McCoy said the changes will begin with a new automated recycling program that will affect 4,000 residential homes. The program is being designed around the current collection schedule.

The town has acquired a truck equipped with a mechanical arm that lifts and dumps special containers into the truck without the driver's having to leave the truck's cab.

The containers, one for refuse and the other for recyclables, have lids to reduce the likelihood of refuse falling out and blowing around. The automatic equipment is expected to reduce the potential for injuries to workers.

The larger recycling containers enable single-stream recycling, which should make recycling easier and save money by reducing the amount of waste the town must dispose of at waste processing facilities like the Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority incinerator in Hartford's South Meadows.

Each residence selected for the first phase of automation will receive at no cost, a 64- or 96-gallon blue recycling container. Containers are available for inspection at the public works facility at 375 Hartford Turnpike. Recycling personnel will be available to help residents decide which size best suits their needs.

The new containers will be delivered in April and left in the suggested weekly pickup location. The containers should be put out, if possible, only when they are full.

The program ultimately will be expanded to the entire town, McCoy said.

For more information, residents may call the public works department at 860-870-3500.