Rubbish busters

November 28, 2013

A new river fleet has gone into operation to help workers pull waste and weeds from the Chao Phraya.

The bright yellow harvesters are a welcome sight to the workers tasked with the huge task of keeping the waterway free of debris. Robotic arms and mechanical teeth are used to chew up the debris and other rubbish so that it can processed more efficiently at a waste treatment facility.

The vessels are equipped with large sieve turbines which drag up weeds and other refuse from the water surface and feed it on to a conveyer belt. The waste is then fed into a sealed chamber where a cutting wheel shreds it into small pieces before it is sent into the barge hold for storage and eventual transfer to the riverbank for disposal.

The harvesters can store approximately four tonnes of waste in their holds in comparison to the small boats previously used by waste workers to collect the debris, which can store only 250kg.