With its appearance in Bushnell Park just days before the marathon, the Big Belly Solar Compactor adds Hartford to the list of customers which include city parks, national parks, shopping districts, universities, and notably, around Fenway Park.
These may be the only public, or at least visible, recycling containers in town. Before these arrived, people had few options: throw recyclables in garbage bins, carry items home to recycle later, or throw items on the ground. Now, garbage is contained better, discouraging rodents. This seems like one more positive step for the city.
Yet, one has to wonder if this container is really a sign of progress. Of all places that it could go, it was placed under trees in the park. The company website indicates that while it does not need direct sunlight to work, it should not be placed “under a roof or tree.” Certainly, the trees will be without leaves in a few weeks, but until then, the machine is not going to operate as it should. Bushnell Park has many lovely trees, but it also has wide open spaces better suited for a machine that runs off solar power.
Moreover, the company says that these bins have four-to-five times the capacity of regular bins, reducing waste collection trips by eighty percent. As they say, “trash collection vehicles,” averaging three miles per gallon, “are among the most fuel inefficient ever designed.” The solar compactor even is equipped with technology to signal when it is filled and needing to be emptied. As you can see from the photo, many trash barrels remain in the park, which will theoretically need to be emptied anyway. Since the maintenance trucks will be right in the same area, it is unclear how this is going to reduce trips.
The general location of these new containers makes sense. They are plunked beside the path which receives the most traffic, right next to the carousel. But until the other cans are removed from the same area and these solar compactors are moved into a sunnier location, their presence is more of a gesture than a true sign of progress.
Meghan Q
How about they spend this money on installing a water fountain so that people who are thirsty could drink something? I can’t tell you how many times people just want a drink of water at Food Not Bombs – if we’re out, they are out of luck. I guess the library is your best bet for a drink, if it’s open.
In any case, it’s ridiculous that there’s no public water fountain in the park, especially because there’s a playground there. They have a water fountain at Blueback Square. They even have one for dogs there!
The ironic thing is, there’s an entire pond of flowing (although dirty) water in the park. Are people in Hartford supposed to drink out of the pond?