This in from Island Roads, in their own words. Ed
A new approach to the way the Island’s streets are kept clean has led to a dramatic decrease in the amount of waste material being sent to landfill.
In the last year alone, Island Roads have cleared over 5,000 tonnes of litter, dog waste and leaf fall to help keep roads on the Island clear of rubbish and more than two thirds of waste collected has been diverted from landfill for recycling.
Early start
The cleansing teams, who start work before most residents are awake each day, working in allocated zones across the Island, collect a large proportion of the waste by hand from litter bins, dog bins and using barrows on the streets.
Mechanical sweepers are also used where more practical and are often carried out twice a day and three times during the peak summer period, particularly in town centres and along seafront areas.
Not just litter and leaves
The work also involves cleaning graffiti from public areas, clearing dead animals from the roadside and the disposal of scrap metal, plasterboard and soils – much of which can be taken to specialist recycling location to ensure the safety of passing traffic.
July busiest month for litter bins
In terms of litter bin emptying, the busiest month is July when over 75 tonnes were collected while nearly 30 tonnes of dog mess was cleared from bins in the busiest month of August. The largest volume of leaf litter – some 226 tonnes – was, not surprisingly, collected in November while the most monthly debris yielded from mechanical sweeps was the 431 tonnes processed in March.
Heavily invested in the latest equipment
Dave Wallis, Island Roads Environmental Manager said,
“Street cleansing is a year round operation and the demand on the services changes month by month for example during the summer months when more people are out walking their dogs, and when the volume of people visiting the Island increases.
“Island Roads has invested heavily in the latest equipment to ensure we are able to keep our streets clean as efficiently and as effectively as possible. We are also required to dispose of the materials collected in the most environmentally-friendly way and we are pleased that there has been a dramatic drop in the amounts of waste disposed to landfill.”
Teams take great pride in their work
With many of those employed in this role having lived on the Island all their lives they take great pride in the work they do to keep the Island streets clean and free from litter.
Street Cleansing Supervisor Nigel Smith said:
“Our teams work from early in the day until late into the evening to try and ensure that the Island is kept looking smart for the visitors that come to the Island and for residents living here and the teams take great pride in the work that they do.”
Image: © Spencer Griffiths
