A cluster of recognizable solar-powered trash cans will be fully installed in time for next month’s Boston Marathon, according to the Boston Parks Department.

In total, 46 “SmartBelly” stations will be installed by Patriots’ Day weekend, Ryan Woods, a parks department spokesman  told BostInno in a phone call. He said 36 stations will be fully installed on Boston Common and 10 more along the waterfront at Christopher Columbus Park.

Earlier, Mitch Nollman, marketing vice president of BigBelly Solar, told BostInno in a phone call that this deployment is the “biggest ever” in Boston.

Bostonians have probably seen BigBelly’s smart receptacles before; these smart trash cans have been a fixture around Kenmore Square and up-and-down Commonwealth Avenue, on the Boston University campus. In the fall of 2009, Nollman said, BU first installed SmartBellies as part of a two-year pilot program. Additional deployments were added to the campus in 2011 and 2013.

Around Boston, a total of 600 SmartBellies have been installed, Nollman said.

SmartBellies come in single, double and triple stations – trash, recycling, and composting receptacles. This recent deployment will consist of 40 single trash can stations, and six double stations – for trash and recyclables, Nollman said.

SmartBelly stations have built in real-time data technology that measures the amount of waste each station contains. This information can be accessed from any computer or smartphone to determine which trash cans need unloading. This real-time data helps waste management companies see which SmartBelly stations get the most and least action. So, the cans aren’t just an alarm clock for trash collection – SmartBelly data lets companies know if stations should be relocated elsewhere.

Each station cost “about $3,000,” Nollman said.

SmartBelly stations are larger than normal cans, which means less frequent collections are necessary. According to Nollman, “150 gallons of trash can fit inside one station.”

SmartBellies have also been designed to limit the public’s exposure to the waste – and prevent other things from getting into the trash.

“What’s cool about these,” Nollman said, is that SmartBellies prevent trash from getting “blown all over the place,” because stations are open receptacles. The design also blocks rats from taking part in a “food festival,” Nollman added.

As many know, SmartBellies require people to pull down a handle before trashing something. This process, some suggest, is a little gross – anything could be on those handles.

‘This [complaint] is something we’ve heard,” Nollman admitted. Ultimately, however, Nollman said, touching a SmartBelly handle isn’t as bad as other alternatives.

“[The handles] is  also pretty easy to open with your elbow,” Nollman added.

 

Image via bigbelly.com