TAILLIGHTS
Keeping America clean:
The evolution of the waste industry Republic Services and Mack Trucks Historical Museum honor refuse industry with new exhibit By Kevin Williams
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fascination with trash and trash removal collection has visitors flocking to see the history of waste removal on full display at the Mack Trucks Historical Museum’s Refuse exhibit. The new exhibit, which features three antique Mack® trucks and an interactive display, was made possible by support from Mack Trucks and Republic Services, an industry leader in recycling and waste disposal. Republic Services provided the three classic Mack models for use in the new exhibit. The Mack models on display include a 1929 Mack AK model with hoist and dump body, a
1951 Mack LF model with a Heil Colecto-Pak body, and a 1965 Mack B53S model with a Dempster Dumpster body. Republic Services also helped develop the exhibit’s interactive displays and refuse industry timeline wall. People have always felt a connection to trash and that has made the refuse exhibit at the museum such a success, says Doug Maney, curator of the Mack Trucks Historical Museum in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Maney credits the refuse exhibit, officially known as “Keeping America Clean,” with raising museum attendance by 20% this summer. “It’s been very well-received. Our visitors are Mack customers who are in different
“The earliest refuse vehicles were horse-drawn wagons that cleaned up horse-waste on the streets and ashes from cooking and heating. Everyone had ashes.” Doug Maney, curator of the Mack Trucks Historical Museum
locations. Some of the first customers to come through were employees from another waste collection company, and they were impressed. They said they learned things about their own industry they didn’t know,” Maney says, adding that the exhibit appeals to a blend of industry veterans and the general public. However, those in the refuse industry business prefer to call it refuse or waste management rather than “garbage.” And it’s not simple semantics driving the change in language; it’s that the “garbage truck” is no longer just about garbage. “It’s not just the derogatory connotations of garbage, it’s that the move to recycling has almost split the refuse industry in half. The bulk of what we dispose of now is packaging, which can be recycled for the most part, and the rest has to be disposed of,” Maney says.
From horses to high tech One of the exhibit’s most popular components chronicles the history of collection by delving into how Mack refuse vehicles have evolved over time. 2019 V3 | BULLDOG | 27