LAGUNA NIGUEL : Glitch Stalls Delivery of Recycling Trucks

The delivery of 10 trash-collecting trucks for Laguna Niguel’s new curbside recycling program has been delayed while the manufacturer contends with a mechanical defect in the vehicles’ loading bin, officials said.

A problem with a sealing plate in some garbage trucks recently purchased by the city of Los Angeles forced a delay in final delivery, and that stalled Laguna Niguel’s order of the same model vehicle, Public Works Director Ken Montgomery said.

“It has to be something pretty serious for them to take them all back,” said Montgomery, who tabbed March 8 as the recycling program’s new start date. “I guess it’s better that we didn’t get ours before they found out about the problem.”

Despite the recall, Montgomery said he is confident that city officials made the right choice in manufacturer and truck model, which was ordered from Chino Hills-based Amrap Manufacturers.

“We’re not worried at all. (Amrap) is an outstanding company,” Montgomery said. A Los Angeles Sanitation Department spokesman also said such repairs and warranty work “are common and usually minor.”

The trucks, which mount an Amrap box on a Volvo White chassis, cost $130,000 each and feature a robotic arm that lifts barrels, unloads trash and returns the container to the sidewalk. Also, video cameras affixed to the trucks’ exterior help drivers position the arm and keep tabs on nearby traffic.

The 10 trucks are being purchased by Solag Disposal, which has the franchise for trash hauling in several South County cities. The firm has already initiated the same program in Dana Point and plans to extend it to San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente in the next two months. Solag General Manager Jim Koutroulis said the delivery delay is a minor inconvenience.

“It was a small mechanical problem, and they caught it before the trucks were out, so it only put us a week behind schedule,” Koutroulis said. Officials had set Feb. 15 as the original delivery date.

Under the recycling program, Laguna Niguel residents who now have curbside trash pickup will receive two 60-gallon barrels, a blue one for recyclables and a black intended for other trash, between March 8 and April 2.

Montgomery said pickups will begin one week after delivery day, and continue on that schedule. Along with the usual cans, glass, newspaper and plastics, the recycling program will also accept magazines, telephone books, envelopes with plastic windows and cardboard.

Solag will be reimbursed for its costs through residential trash service bills, which in Laguna Niguel will jump from $11.07 to $13.25 monthly, Montgomery said. The state has mandated that all cities reduce solid waste disposal by 25% by 1995, and a full 50% by the turn of the century.