Throughout the early 2000s, the Kefalonia Intermunicipal Enterprise for Waste Management and Environmental Protection provided an efficient waste collection system for Kefalonia island using their mixed fleet of 1980s and the more modern 1990s waste collection vehicles.
By Timothy Byrne
In the Ionian Sea is the island of Kefalonia. It is a popular tourist destination and the largest of the three Ionian Islands. It is very popular with English tourists from May to September because of its warm temperatures, which then reach 40 degrees in July and August.
An increase in tourism means an increase in waste, which needs to be collected throughout the island. The management of this is the responsibility of the Kefalonia Intermunicipal Enterprise for Waste Management and Environmental Protection.
I spent my summer holidays in Kefalonia in 2000, 2001 and 2002 and since I work in the waste management industry, I spent a great deal of time going out in the island鈥檚 fleet of waste collection trucks. There are seven permanent waste collection rounds which cover the collection of waste for the capital鈥擜rgostoli鈥攁nd the other towns and villages across the island. In the summer, additional vehicles were needed to collect these larger volumes of waste. Collection vehicles were operated mornings and afternoons during the summer months to keep the waste volumes to a minimum.
Each of the seven waste collection rounds as well as the supporting rounds used during the summer are manned by a driver and two operatives. The waste collection services starting time varies across Kefalonia. In the summer months, the vehicles start work at 4am and in the winter, they start at 5:30am.
Collection Vehicles
On my two-week annual holiday in Kefalonia in 2000, 2001 and 2002, I went out in all of the island鈥檚 fleet of waste collection trucks. The island most commonly bought second hand 1980s Mercedes Benz SK waste collection vehicles from Germany for the islands鈥� waste collection service. The island found these second hand Mercedes Benz SK 1980鈥檚 waste collection trucks were very reliable because the island鈥檚 warm temperatures meant little could go wrong with the vehicles.
The island had only ever bought a small number of new waste collection vehicles. In the 1980s, the island bought two new Steyr 91 4×2 two-axle 16-ton chassis fitted with the Kaoussis CRV1600 16m3 rotary drum compaction equipment. Trunnion lifting equipment to handle wheeled containers of DIN 30700 specification were also fitted to the vehicles. In 1996, the island purchased a new Mercedes Benz SK 2024 4×2 two-axle 17-ton chassis fitted with a 16m3 Faun Varopress body and trunnion lifting equipment built and supplied directly from Faun in Germany. The vehicle had a trunnion lifter fitted to empty wheeled containers to DIN 30700 specification.
In 1999, the island purchased a Mercedes Benz Atego 1523 4×2 two-axle 15-ton chassis fitted with a 12m3 Kaoussis CRV1600 rotary drum compaction body complete with a comb and trunnion bin lifter to handle the DIN 30700 and DIN 30740 specification wheeled containers.
Out on Collection Rounds
I spent a number of days going out with each waste collection truck on a variety of the seven waste collection rounds operated across the island. I arrived at the island鈥檚 central depot in Argostoli at 4am to go out in one of the island鈥檚 seven waste collection trucks. Round one covers Argostoli, the tourist resorts of Lassi and Fanari, where the island鈥檚 picturesque Saint Theodoroi lighthouse sits. This is the largest waste collection round on the island because of the density of waste collected and the number of inhabitants the round covers. To enhance the efficiency of this waste collection round, the Kefalonia Intermunicipal Enterprise for Waste Management and Environmental Protection operated a 1980鈥檚 Mercedes SK 2224 6X4 three-axle 24-ton chassis fitted with a 22m3 Haller X2 rear loading body complete with trunnion bin lifting equipment to DIN 30700 specification. This vehicle collected all of the waste deposited in the 660 and 1100 litre roll-top containers placed in the main streets of Argostoli and Lassi.
The second round I accompanied collected waste from the central parts of Argostoli and Lassi, e.g., the side streets where the larger 1980s Mercedes SK 2224 6×4 three-axle 24-ton Haller X2 could not reach. To collect the waste in these areas, a 1980s Mercedes SK 1617 4X2 two-axle 16m3 Kuka Rotopress complete with DIN 30700 bin lifting equipment was used.
The third round serviced Lixouri. The vehicle used for this was one of the two 1980s Steyr 91 4×2 two-axle 16-ton chassis fitted with the Kaoussis CRV1600 16m3 rotary drum compaction equipment. Round four serviced the town and port of Sami and the town of Agia Effimia with their surrounding villages. The vehicle used for this was the newer 1996 Mercedes SK 2024 4X2 two-axle 17-ton chassis fitted with a 16m3 Faun Variopress body.
Round five serviced the towns of Poros, Skala and Katelios. The vehicle used was a 1980s Mercedes SK 2222 6×4 three-axle chassis fitted with a Faun 22m3 Rotopress complete with the trunnion bin lifting equipment to empty wheeled containers of 660 and 1,100 liter capacities. Round six serviced Fiskardo, the village of Assos as well as some of the villages in Lixouri where the larger 1980s Steyr 91 4×2 two-axle 16-ton 16m3 Kaoussis CRV1600 waste collection vehicle could not reach. The vehicle used to collect the waste was the 1999 Mercedes Atego 1523 4×2 two-axle 15-ton chassis fitted with the 12m3 Kaoussis CRV1600 rotary drum compaction body.
Round seven collected waste in the region of Livathos. This region encompasses a number of villages as well as the island鈥檚 airport. The vehicle used in this region was similar to the vehicle used by round two e.g. a 1980s Mercedes SK 1617 4X2 two-axle 16m3 Kuka Rotopress waste collection vehicle complete with the DIN 30700 bin lifting equipment. The only difference is that it had a crew cab to facilitate a crew of six people as opposed to the day cab variant used on round two which seats a crew of three.
A Mixed Fleet
All of the waste collection vehicles collected one load of waste a day across Kefalonia. Once finished they travelled to the island鈥檚 sanitary landfill site at Pallosti which was in the north of the island. Once the waste collection vehicles had discharged their loads, they returned to the central depot of Argostoli to be washed out and to fuel up for the next working day before concluding their day鈥檚 work. The 1980s Steyr 91 4×2 two-axle 16-ton Kaoussis CRV1600 rotary drum waste collection vehicle which worked on round three would return to Lixouri to park up as this vehicle was out based.
The sister 1980s Steyr 91 4×2 two axle 16 tonne Kaoussis CRV1600 16m3 rotary drum waste collection vehicle and three similar 1980鈥檚 Mercedes SK 1617 4×2 two-axle 16-ton 16m3 Kuka and Faun Rotopress鈥檚 were waiting at the depot in Argostoli to commence operation on the afternoon waste collection shift while I was there.
In conclusion, the Kefalonia Intermunicipal Enterprise for Waste Management and Environmental Protection provided an efficient waste collection system for Kefalonia island using their mixed fleet of 1980s and the more modern 1990鈥檚 waste collection vehicles throughout 2000, 2001 and 2002.
Timothy Byrne is a worldwide waste collection and transfer systems consultant and a freelance waste management technical writer based in Birmingham, UK. He has worked in the waste management industry for 20 years. He lives in the UK and has carried out a lot of work and research into waste collection and waste transfer systems in Mediterranean countries. He has also visited New Delhi to carry out research into waste collection and waste transfer systems in India鈥檚 capital city. He can be reached at 0044 1384 211001 or 0044 7545 616110 or via e-mail at [email protected].