Dive Brief:
- Glenn Balliew, public works director for Kirksville, MO, says that collection trucks operated by Advanced Disposal are too heavy and damaging local roads, as reported by the Kirksville Daily Express.
- Missouri state statute allows tandem axle trucks to have a maximum weight of 67,200 pounds. Balliew hasn't been able to confirm this with Advanced, but he believes their trucks weigh between 81,500-99,000 pounds.
- Balliew estimates that the damage done by one truck of that weight is equivalent to nearly 9,500 cars. "When you look at one street and the whole side of the (street) the trash truck runs down is ruined and on the other side there’s nothing wrong with it, it’s obvious what’s doing all the damage," he told the Daily Express.
Dive Insight:
Advanced Disposal recently went public with a successful IPO and has acquired numerous companies in recent years. The company's contract to collect Kirksville's waste was renewed in 2014 and will expire in 2019. No clear option was presented to address the weight issue during the meeting where Balliew made these comments and any solution could be expensive.
However, road maintenance is also expensive and this will potentially end up becoming a problem for residents by diverting resources from other projects or creating poor driving conditions for longer periods of time. The city of Manteca, CA took an interesting approach to this problem by using Renewable Identification Number credits it received from creating biofuel to pay for road maintenance.
The environmental effects of emissions from collection vehicles are more often discussed than road damage, but this is a factor for any municipality. A Dutch company's concept for roads made from recycled plastic which would have replaceable sections would solve this, though widespread implementation is many years away.
