The experiments were initiated by deputy mayor Uzi Cohen.
By MIRIAM BULWAR DAVID-HAYuzi cohen 88 224(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
Ra'anana is experimenting with the power of solar energy, reports the Hebrew weekly Ha'ir-Tzomet Hasharon. The city is testing two solar-powered street signs that light up at night after storing solar energy during the day, and is also testing a solar-powered garbage bin that uses the sun's energy to drive a compressor inside it and compact the waste, resulting in a significantly less frequent need to empty it.
According to the report, the experiments were initiated by deputy mayor Uzi Cohen, who says that while the solar street signs cost NIS 1,500 each and the solar garbage bin cost NIS 10,000, in the long run they save large amounts of money.
"The signs work without any connection to electricity … they are charged during the day and at night light up automatically," Cohen said. "They are much safer than regular signs because there are no cables, and we save on electricity."
The report said the solar street signs have been installed at two locations so far, one in Rehov Golomb and the other in Rehov Borochov. The solar garbage bin, which holds an American patent and is already being sold in the US and in Australia, has been placed in the main street, Rehov Ahuza. The bin can reportedly compress garbage up to five times its own volume, reducing the need to empty it from once every second day to once every 10th day, with a consequent reduction in the number of waste removal trucks and their pollution in the city.
Cohen added that the city was currently testing the costs of the solar signs and bin against their efficiency, and if the city decided to go ahead with further purchases it would most likely offset the costs by selling advertising space on the solar items.
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