Anglesey trials electric recycling collection vehicle
Anglesey Council has trialled a new electric recycling collection vehicle in partnership with Terberg Matec UK, its waste management contractor, Biffa, and Welsh Government.
Initial findings from the trial, which was conducted by the council’s waste management team, have proved encouraging; with data collected showing a significant reduction of CO₂ emissions (414kgs) as well as a saving of £146.34 on fuel over a six day period.
During the trial, the electric vehicle also showed it could cope with the distances covered on collections rounds on the Island. It began each collection round fully charged, and there was still charge left at the end of the working day. Even on the day it travelled farthest (67 miles) there was still a 25% charge left on the vehicle.
Anglesey Council’s Head of Highways, Waste Management and Property, Huw Percy said: “Anglesey is proud of its recycling efforts and is now leading the way in trialling electric kerbside collection vehicles.
“This was a very significant trial, as Terberg Matec will use the data collected to inform future development of electric vehicles across the UK. We look forward to seeing how the results can help us plan to replace our current diesel vehicles with electric alternatives over the coming years. Replacing our existing recycling collection fleet with electric vehicles would greatly help reduce CO₂ emissions, costs and go a long way towards helping the council meet its decarbonisation targets.
“Our corporate fleet already has a number of other electric vehicles, which offer many advantages in terms of a cleaner and quieter environment as well as reducing running costs.”
Tackling climate change is now at the forefront of work and decisions undertaken by the County Council. Its ambitious new roadmap towards becoming a carbon neutral organisation by 2030 was recently approved.
Anglesey Climate Change Manager, Rhys Williams, added: “Achieving net zero carbon status by 2030 will be a challenge for the Council, but by working with our partners, including Welsh Government, we hope to use new technologies – such as these electric vehicles – to meet that target and deliver services in a more environmentally sustainable manner.
“As well as this most recent trial, we have also adopted a new long-term electric vehicle charging plan to provide charging infrastructure for the Island to help reduce carbon footprint. Anglesey already has one of the highest number of EV charging points per head of population in Wales; and we want to be in a position to build on this when new funding becomes available.”
The Welsh Government has declared a target of achieving a net zero public sector by 2030 and the whole of Wales by 2050.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “We are pleased to hear of the recent trial as electric vehicles like the one recently tested on Anglesey will play an integral role in delivering on the Welsh Government’s commitment for public sector fleets to be net zero by 2030.
“The future use and funding of these type of electric vehicles would also be a great illustration of our commitment to combatting climate change. Not only are they ultra-low emission, but in collecting kerbside recycling they would play a crucial role in collecting the material needed to decarbonise the wider economy and our communities.”
Image courtesy of Anglesey Council.
