Causeway Coast & Glens Council to consider solar-powered bins which alert when full
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council will explore the installation of environmentally friendly ‘Bigbelly’ compactor bins at prominent tourist sites.
Described as “compactor-integrated smart bins” by manufacturer Bywaters, Bigbelly bins are equipped with a solar panel and an app to signal when they are near capacity, leading to reduced collection costs.
Founded in 2003, Bigbelly was "determined to transform one of the least efficient and resource-heavy industries: waste operations”
"With the goal of enhancing productivity while reducing costs, fuel consumption, and labor, a solar-powered compacting waste bins was introduced for public spaces,” the company website reads.
At June’s Environmental Services Committee meeting, TUV councillor Jonathan McAuley asked Director of Environmental Services, Aidan McPeake, if there were any such bins in the borough and proposed a report on the feasibility of installing them in tourist hotspots.
“They’re actually solar powered and whenever they’re full, they alert the Council that they need emptied,” he noted. “These are bound to be a great job in tourist towns here like Portrush, and Ballycastle, especially on big days where the bins are needing emptied quite often.”
Mr McPeake agreed to produce a report and said Council did have similar bins in place that were “reasonably successful” despite some technical issues.
He noted that as the bins would contribute towards Council’s climate change strategy, there was potential to receive grant aid to offset their cost.
“There’s bound to be a saving, surely, on staff and fuel if they’re not being emptied as much?” councillor McAuley asked.
Mr McPeake replied: “If they’re in the right location there there can be economic benefit for it, yeah.”
DUP Alderman Sharon McKillop said Council had previously produced a report and there was a similar bin in her Bushmills district electoral area before the amalgamation of the four legacy councils.
“It was unfortunate that we had to have ours removed from Bushmills, there was some issue around the whole cost of repairing them,” she said.
“Yet I’d say that they were quite easy to maintain and for the batteries to be changed but, so I was quite annoyed that we did lose our compact bins in Bushmills and around the borough.
“I certainly would be in support of doing that exercise again, because there is so much environmental benefit to having those,” she added.