At their meeting on Tuesday 13th
October, Port Erin Commissioners announced that an initial phase of localised
bring banks were to be introduced over the coming weeks.
Chair, Mr Nick Watterson announced,
“Following a detailed review of domestic waste disposal in Port Erin, including
a number of recycling options, the Board has opted to proceed with a scheme
which will see the installation of Bring Banks at a number of locations within
Port Erin. Each location will have a combination of bins which will allow
residents to recycle mixed glass, paper and cans.
The first location is close to
the new development of Port Erin’s new Public Sector Housing on the Ballakilley
estate which aims to serve all of the new dwellings on this new estate.
The second location will be
created at Marashen Crescent. By replacing the existing bring banks with the
new style Bring Banks, this will also free up some much needed Car Parking
spaces in this area.
A further site will be created
in the area adjacent to Port Erin Commissioners stores at Station Road Car Park
providing a further easy to access location to recycle.
Other locations for this first
phase are at Erin Way, along the public footpath between Milner Park &
Milner Close and at the entrance to Magherrosien.
Mr Watterson went to add, “As
part of the review, the option to offer kerbside collection was explored in
great depth, however the cost versus benefit simply did not work for Port Erin.”
Mr Watterson went to add, “The waste
review also highlighted additional ‘green’ opportunities for Port Erin
Commissioners as the Board was also in the process of reviewing its vehicle
fleet. Following a successful trial, the Board has decided to purchase an electric
Nissan eNV200 van to replace its older diesel equivalent.
As all of our vans are
predominantly used within the Port Erin area, the annual mileage is relatively
low, yet each of our vans ran on diesel fuel. From the detailed waste review,
it was established that each 1T of household waste processed at the Energy from
Waste (EfW) facility generates around 500kWhs, which means that just 3.5T of
household waste collected by Port Erin Commissioners and processed at the EfW
would generate enough electricity to run the electric van for a year with a
‘fuel’ bill of only £15 per month.
With lower Road License fees,
servicing costs and the fact that the ancillary items could be simply swapped
over from the existing van the proposition was very cost effective. Athol
Garage in Ballasalla, sourced us the vehicle and will service the Electric Van
along with our other Nissan vans.
The Board is pleased to have
replaced a diesel model with a greener solution and we are informed that Port
Erin Commissioners is the first local authority to have taken the step into
Electric Van ownership.
Mr Watterson concluded, “Finally,
Manx Utilities are in the process of installing electric vehicle charging
points outside our office on Bridson Street, which allows other electric
vehicle users to top up their vehicles when visiting or shopping in Port Erin.”
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