It seems very simple, but still had to think about it! The Departmental Council of Hérault has just installed on an experimental basis waste traps to trap rubbish that are piling up on the side of the roads. It was an innovation competition launched three years ago with agents from the department that led to the creation of these traps.
These are metal grids installed at the exit of the nozzles and which make it possible to filter the water to recover the waste abandoned at the edge of the roads. “This waste is pushed either by the wind or by passing vehicles and always end up in our ditches. Once there are rains or heavy storms, these ditches increase. And then the water flows out. You can’t filter through ditches. But on the other hand, the best way for us is the exit of the nozzles. That is to say that wherever you have a bridge, a passage to cross a ditch, you have a culvert underneath. And at the exit of the nozzles, we put this trap which does not prevent the water from passing, on the other hand we recover waste” explains Philippe Vidal, vice-president in charge of roads at the Departmental Council.
These traps have been installed in Olonzac, Villetelle and Bessan. And they have amply demonstrated their effectiveness. “We recover everything there. It is our great misfortune. Most often discarded cans, plastic bottles, rags, lots of plastic and metal.”
Each year, the Departmental Council conducts cleaning operations
that it publicizes to make motorists aware in particular that the edges of the roads have become real garbage cans. “This problem has increased over time. We didn’t have so much incivility before. And then we also have the waste flying away from the trucks which transit to sorting centers or waste collection centres. I often say this to municipalities and communities.
After being tested in three towns, these traps will be installed in eight new sites in Béziers, Teyran, Riols and Bédarieux. “This waste along the roads is a nuisance first for our agents because when they prune or pass the brushcutter, it makes confetti, which is even more unpleasant. And then, in a tourist region where we look with curiosity, our surroundings must be attractive.”
These waste traps are made by people with disabilities from the ESAT of the Hérault Valley
in Florence.
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