The Orinda City Council decided on Jan. 16 to go ahead with a five-year lease agreement to replace standard trash and recycling cans on city property with Bigbelly Smart Waste and Recycling receptacles. The solar powered receptacles have much greater capacity than standard cans, resulting in fewer of them needed, going from a total of 126 traditional bins to 49 Bigbelly bins throughout Orinda (see table).
The Bigbelly system consists of the closed receptacles and a computer application. The units communicate information to the application, which can be accessed by staff who can determine what attention each unit requires. This is expected to lower costs overall. Staff estimates savings to the city of $40,000 per year. The program will be funded by a one-time grant from the Recycle Smart JPA of $599,687, and will not come out of the city's general fund.
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