Palmerston North’s electric rubbish trucks launched

Palmerston North’s first all-electric solid waste and recycling trucks have been officially launched by city mayor Grant Smith.

The Manco Environmental trucks are the first Kiwi-made electric rubbish trucks to hit the road.

The two purpose-built EVs replace two leased trucks and began work this week on kerbside collections for solid waste (3600kg payload) and glass (1900kg payload).

Smith says the trucks will become a familiar sight and carry the clever double message “Keeping it clean”. Not only does that mean keeping the city clean through collecting refuse and recycling but also keeping the wider environment clean through reducing carbon emissions and noise pollution, he says.

The city aims to reduce carbon emissions 25% by 2028.

Te reo on one side of the trucks also translates to ‘Caring for the Environment’, further driving home the message the Palmerston North City Council is serious about protecting the environment, Smith says.

He says the trucks are also a significant and highly visual way to showcase the city’s aim to be an “eco city”.

Smith thanks the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) which contributed half of the cost of the trucks – more than $300,000 of the $736,000 – from its low emission vehicles contestable fund.

An on-site co-generation plant at the Resource Recovery Park generates electricity which will be used to recharge the trucks, which have a 180km range.

Smith believes the trucks will demonstrate the possibilities for other commercial lower emission vehicles.

Performance of the electrics will be compared with the council’s diesel trucks, providing useful data not only for the city’s sustainability objectives and fleet development programme (it has four hybrids plus a hybrid mayoral car and three electric bikes), but also for other businesses and the Government, he says.

Smith says the council was recently awarded a five-star operator safety rating from the NZ Transport Agency for its heavy commercial vehicles.

The green on the orange trucks is associated with conservation and is, coincidentally, the city’s representative sporting colour combination.

The lack of noise with the electric trucks is highlighted by Smith who hopes people get used to not relying on the sound of the diesel rubbish truck coming to get their recycling and waste to the kerb in time.