The beginning of the end for environmentally harmful diesel powered commercial vehicles has arrived with the delivery of the very first dedicated Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) waste collection trucks into Ireland.
In a €750,000 overall investment in new CNG Scania trucks and a compressor and refuelling station at its Shannon, Co. Clare operation, Mid-West based waste management company Clean Ireland Recycling, which has its Limerick headquarters on Lord Edward Street, will have the first ever dedicated CNG waste collection trucks on the road in Ireland.
The investment will deliver a 22% saving on carbon emissions and 99% less particulate matter but also a fuel cost saving of up to 30% per vehicle compared with its diesel equivalent.
Clean Ireland Recycling is, in association with Gas Networks Ireland, currently commissioning a compressor and refuelling station at its Shannon, Co. Clare plant.
The specially commissioned Scania CNG trucks will replace some of the company’s diesel powered fleet, with all others to follow over the coming years.
Operations Director of Clean Ireland Recycling Brian Lyons said: “This is a very significant moment for not just Clean Ireland Recycling but the wider transport industry in Ireland. We’ve been a leader in environmentally friendly waste management solutions since the company was founded in 1990 but this is a first for the waste industry and heavy goods vehicles across the board in Ireland.
“We’ve prided ourselves all along in being market leaders in terms of environmental innovation in our sector and this is another example of it. This investment will reduce our own emissions significantly and, in doing so, the carbon footprints of our customers, both domestic and commercial. CNG is a far cleaner fuel than diesel and we all owe it to this and future generations to minimise our impact on the environment,” he said.
Clean Ireland Recycling was one of the first waste management companies in the country to introduce the wheelie bin in the early 1990s. It was also the first Irish company to introduce both the ‘brown’ (food) bin and 360ltr recycling bin to its entire customer base with the latter replacing the standard 240ltr bin which diverted a further 130kg of waste per annum away from landfill.