You might want to be thinking better of that Waste Management side loading truck which keeps stopping and starting in front of you.
One of those trucks, emptying out the wheelie bins will typically haul away 16,000kgs of general waste from anywhere between 1200 to 1500 homes a day.
The daily waste produces around 6,000 kilowatts of electricity, or theoretically generate the electricity required to run a typical electric car for 30,000kms.
In reality, the electricity is fed back to the national grid, sustaining around 275 homes and running an electric rubbish collection truck for a day.
With 32 trucks already electrified, another 20 to be converted by the end of the year, Waste Management has partnered with New Zealand smart charger manufacturer Evnex, to charge its fleet safely and efficiently.
There are 49 Evnex chargers operating, and another 26 will be installed soon; and an online dashboard - CP Link - allows Waste Management to actively manage and track their fleet’s charging costs.
“The trucks are critical to our business, so having live access to the charge stations is very important to us,” says Sam Donaldson, the company’s Senior Project Engineer – Electric Vehicle.
“We also utilise Evnex’s load balancing functions to remain below the maximum current draw available at the distribution board, which allows us to ensure the reliability of the charging network at sites with limited current available.
“With a total fleet of over 800 trucks, we expect to significantly reduce emissions with our electric conversion programme in the coming years,” says Donaldson.
Evnex founder and CEO Ed Harvey says partnering with Waste Management aligns with their own values.
“Their comprehensive approach to reducing carbon and waste while creating a circular economy matches our philosophy - an EV isn’t a zero-emission vehicle if fossil fuels are burnt to power it,” he says.
“Clean charging - using electricity generated from renewable sources - helps drivers reduce their footprint and take better care of the environment. Waste Management’s innovation means energy generated from landfill waste goes back into the grid.
“Not only does this reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, but it also reduces greenhouse gases emitted from landfill waste. We feel privileged to support the charging needs of such a progressive company”.
Waste Management has built world-leading landfill and energy parks - feats of modern engineering - to contain waste while capturing greenhouse gas safely. The facilities destroy the gases or convert them into electricity, which is fed into the national grid.
