Solar compactor

Hot Springs is now using 21st century technology to launch the first solar-powered recycling compactor in the state, through a partnership between the Hot Springs/Garland County Beautification Commission and the Hot Springs Giving Circle. The device is located at Hill Wheatley Plaza in downtown Hot Springs, a place where high volumes of recyclable plastic are deposited into recycling containers during times of high visitor traffic.

During the Beautification Commission’s recent “Save Our Water – Catch the Plastic” campaign where 26 large recycling units resembling giant plastic bottles were placed in every park in Garland County along with other selected sites, each site was evaluated after an eight-week period. At each site, recycling increased and litter decreased, proving that recycling and the avoidance of littering go hand in hand. Hill Wheatley Plaza not only had double the average amount of plastic recycled of any other measured location, but the unit could not keep up with the amount of plastic during times of high foot traffic. In answer to this problem, the commission researched and found a solar-powered compaction unit that could hold up to five times as much Type A plastic as the current recycling unit. The unit will reduce the number of times it requires emptying, thus significantly reducing fuel costs, wear and tear, and carbon emissions.

For more information on plastics recycling, contact Adam Roberts, Beautification Commission executive director, 655-2161 or adamrobertshsgcbc@msn.com.