THE BIG PICKUP
FtImseript for a Motion Picture on 5a Hd Vasts Collect io*>
The Big Pickup (SW-lOQc) was produced under Contract
for the Office of Solid Waste Management Programs
by Stuart Ffnley, Inc.
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
1975
EPA
53CVK
75-001

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Sequence 1: Houston (46ft-; 1:17)
Sunrise? refuse (Music and effects)	r21	:00-:2i
trucks; men
milling around A quiet moment before it starts. A chance to
and talking?
trucks take cff share yesterday-worry over today...contemplate
tomorrow. To come are the eighty pound loads...
smells...danger...the indifference of their
clients.
-.17	: 21—: 39
(Super title: (Music and effects)	:Q6	;39-:45
"Collection"}
Nothing here about swift couriers on appointed
rounds. (pause) Get the job done,..pick up the
garbage... don't miss...don't spill...do it fast	
don't be too loud about it. But there's another
way to look at solid waste collection. It's
frighteningly expensive	over 5 billion a year new.
and growing. When someone takes a hard look,
it's often fat with waste... sometimes demoralized
by inefficiency...excessively costly.
;28	=45-1:13
(Music)	:04	1;13-1j17

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2-
Sequfence 2: Montage (22'; ;37)
Montage of
scene's of
solid waste
waiting to
be collected
< Music)	:03	-.OO-cOl
An inquisitive college' president recently
became a garbage collector for a while.
He noted that people wanted their garbage
collected but didn't seen to want to meet
the collector.	:G9	:Q3~:12
(Kusic)	: 02	: 12-:14
But -society is both the villan arid the victim.
Our no-deposit no-return•attitude creates wastes
which shouldn't have been produced in the first
place. And then our environment....land....air..
and water....are polluted by them. (pause)
Responsible citizens and officials should
investigate today's solid waste problem.-
: 20	:14 —: 3*4
(Music)	;03	: 24-:37

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sui.er.c-a 3: The Collector Speaks (92'; 2:33)
Collectors
pick up
solid waste
on congested
?Jew York City
streets; loads
are heavy?
the vnen must
make their w^y
through parked
cars
(sync sound.)
(sync sound)
[sync sound)
{Music and effects)	:06	:0C-:06
New Yor!-c.,,our biggest city,
:04	-.06-: 10
(Music and effects)	;G7	;10-:17
New York City has over ten thousand sanitation men.
(pause) Like the cop on the beat or the teacher
in the classroom, the garbage man is a contact...
a representative... an agent...of the city.
Let's see what he has to say about his job.
:17	:17—:3 4
"With a situation like this, we have to climb
in between the cars. It is very hard. A lot
of times, the garbage plus the cans weigh over
50 ~ 60 - 70 pounds - It is very hard to do.
;14	:34-:48
"We never got so many cuts as we are getting
now with these here bags. They are overloaded.
Some are about 100 pounds. One man couldn't
even pick it up, and when you try to bring it
across, some look like big frankfurters. You
couldn't do it."
:15	i43-1:03
"The older equipment on rhis particular truck
is not too bad. But on the other older trucks,
you have a lot of fumes that come out and you
inhale them when you are loading the garbage."
: 13	1:03-1:15

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Sequence 3: The Collector Speaks (continued)
(sync sound)	"Yeah, we are well paid, and we are due for
a new contract now. We are still waiting
for it and hope everything turns out right.
I hope we get a little wore money, actually,
because of the cost of living."
:13	1:16-1:29
(s/nc sound)	"If you are waiting around or waiting to get
signed out, or on a break, people think you
are goofing off. They don't realize how hard
you work to get however many tons	ten tons
a day you put on that truck., or better.
People don't realise how much it takes co put
that amount of work on these trucks. You have
got to hustle. It didn't go on there by
itself."	:26	1:29-1:55
No, it never goes on there by itself. (pause)
The men are critical, but sometimes we offer them
little help....little public respect	often
dead-end jobs...no career ladders.... no future....
non-existent.or ineffective efforts to recruit
citizen cooperation. (pause) Collection is
"labor intensive"...like barbering or sculpturing.
Over three quarters of collection costs go to pay
the crews. It's good management to understand
the job of the collector and try to solve his
problems.	:36	1:55-2:31
(Music and effects)	:04	2:31-2:35

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-5-
Sequence 4 : Landfill (25'; -.42)
Bulldozex:
compacting;
pan to
general
view of
landfill
(Music)	:03	:00- : 03
A big city n\ayor once said: "Everybody wants
us to pick up their garbage but nobody wants
us to put it down."
108	:03-:11
(Music)	:01	;11-:12
It's here at the landfill that our excesses
beeone obvious. We're burying useful things....
natural resources that have been expended in a
random and careless way. Obtaining suitable
landfill sites is a growing headache...and costs
are rising. Despite this, collecting solid waste
is still much more expensive than, disposing of it,
Seventy-five cents of every solid waste dollar
goes for colLection-
:2S	:12-j 41
(Music)	t 01	:41-:42

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Sequence 5; Refuse Sorting {42 ' ; 1:10j
Load of
solid waste.
being dumped
on thq ground
worker
deodorizes
refuse;
workers
sort
refuse
into several
categories
(Music and effects)	:02	-.00-: 02
Resource recovery is finally c&tchir-g on.
Some cities and states are now developing
energy recovery and materials recycling systems.
Here, the city of Los Angeles investigates the
composition of its solid waste stream.
: 16	:0 2 - : 18
After deodorizing itr workers sort a typical load
of solid waste to see what it contains. Paper
goes in one pile. Glass in another. Aluminum
and steel cans are sorted out- If we were to recove.
America's municipal wastes, we wouId have a bonanza.
energy....equivalent to four hundred thousand
barrels of oil a day.....recycled materials....
seven percent of the iron..eight percent of the
copper....three percent of the lead....nineteen
percent of the tin..,.and fourteen percent of the
paper we use each year. (pause) Resource recovery
conserves virgin natural resources.—reduces
solid waste...-protects the 'environment.
:44	:18—1:02
(MUsic and effects)	'04	1:02-1:06
Let's see how separate collection might work.
: 0,4	1:06-1:10

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Intentionally Blank Page

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-8-
Seguence 6: rtf.cyc iing-Marblehead (continued).
she drops
them into a
wastebaskat;
nearby
wastebasket
contains
bottles
(Music)	: 03	1:03-1:05
Circulars ana newspaper stories urge and
remind the residents. Every week, two collections
in Harblehead- One is a genefal collection of
garbage and household rubbish. Then, on a
¦ rotating basis, -four separate collections.-,
newspapers...cans-...clear glass-...colored glass.
Complicated....but it seems to be working in thi3
town of ten thousand. Perhaps it ought to be
tried in larger more complex communities.
:30	1:05-1:35
(KttSic)	:C 6	1:35-1:41

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Intentionally Blank Page

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-10-
S a due nee 8: The Ghe tic (33'; 2:18)
Compactor
truck moves
through a
ghetto alley;
four man
crew strives-
to clean up
under
impossible
circumstances
{marl picking
up litter)
(Music and effects)	:05	:00-:05
The inner city is a special profaleru fraught with
emotional overtones,	' :06	:05-:II
(Music and effects)	: 03	:11- : 14
How to keep the city clean',..a challenge of the
highest order. Part of the solution is better
solid waste management.,..better storage facilities
for the residents.—good,* frequent, thorough
collection...-periodic "sweeps" to clean out
pockets of refuse. The other part is change,...
environmental improvement of the inner city.
But, better housing...the elimination of poverty
and social problems	is beyond the purview of the
Sanitation Department. It must simply do the
best it can under the circumstances.
: 35	;14-;49
(Music and effects)	;02	:49- ;5l
LookI See if you can detect what is wrong.
: 04	: 51- 55
(Music and effects)	:02	:5S- :57
The system is wrong. Ir. fact, there is no system.
i 0 4r	:57-l:01
(Music and effects)	:02	1:01-1:03
Does it take a $25,000 truck and four men to
pick up licter?	:05	1:03-1:08
. r% O l.i c,

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-11-
Seosierce 3: The Ghetto (continued)
(man throws
garbage can
over fence)
(truck drives
on leaving
quantities
of material
lying around
in the alley)
(ted springs
crammed into
compactor)
Won't the cans bend, dent and. ultimately break
when they're treated this way?
;06	1:16-1:22
(Music and effects)	:06	1:22-1:28
How do they decide what to pick up...and what to
leave behind?	:05	1:2&-l:33
(Music and effects)	-.04	1:33-1:37
Is this really trie -way to collect old becl springs?
-.04	1:37-1:41
(Music and effects)	;1Q	1:41-1:31
Resources for the Future comments:
"Of all segments of society, the poor are
the least responsible for pollution in the
sense that materially they consume the least.
Conversely, the poor are the chief sufferers
from pollution in the sense that thay have
the least means el' insulating themselves
from pollution effects."
:23	1:51-2 j14
(Music and effects)	:04	2:14-2:18

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-12-
Sequence 9: Pasadena, Tex as-One-Way Sacks and Task System (40'; ,1:06)
Fast moving
crew collects
solid-waste
in paper
sacks in
Pasadena,
Texas
(Music)	: 02	:0Q-:Q2
New ideas can simplify solid waste collection.
: 05	;02-:07
(Music)	j€2	;07-;09
One-way sacks....paper or plastic ....are -
easier to handle..*no lids.contents don't-have
to be dislodged...no cans to return to the curb.
The result is faster, more efficient arid less costly
collection, in combination with other cost saving
measures, the savings may more than pay for the
cost of the bags.	,:23	:09-:32
(Music)	'	:02	;32~:34
The other cost saving measure employed here in
Pasadena, Texas is the "task system". Under this
arrangement, the crew works wore effectively because
it can -go home when the assigned route is completed.
11	:34~i 45
(Music)	-02	:45—:47
The U* S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends
the use of paper or plastic sacks and believes
that either task incentive or monetary incentive
systems will generally result in higher productivity,
lower cost, and improved morale.
:17	:47-1:04
(Music)	;02	1:04-1:06

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Intentionally Blank Page

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-14-
Sequence 10:. Atlanta .{continued)
(worker
carries
big load"
from back
yard)
to get the real facts. This . time-and-motion
study may shed new light on
"backyard" service- Obviously, it's laborious....
but the time-and-rootion study can reveal how
much this luxury actually costs the city and
It turns out that it frequently costs more than
twice as much to tote from the back yard. Back
yard collection has other disadvantages....
greater fuel consumption...increased labor
absenteeism and turnover.... and citizen complaints.
Accordingly, EPA recommends the use of curbside
collection where conditions will permit.
: IB
:55-1;13
its citizens-
: 10
1:13-1:23
: 24
1:23-1:47
(Music)
; 07
1:47-1:54

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Sequence lit Safery (131*• 3:36)
James
Gildersleeve,
Oyster Bay,
New York
sync sound
as he
instructs
new
employees
on the
principles
of safety
"Good morning, gentlemen. Welcome to the
Sanitation Division. We're just going to
have a little talk on safety for your owr.
well being. This, we gain through practical
experier.ee in snany years of labor and effort.'
We'11'start out first of all with the handling
of the can. You go up to the curb. You are
not supposed to pick up more than 7 5 pounds.
When you pick up the can, make sure you can
pick it up with one motion. Don't try to
lift with your back and jerk it. You have
cot only one back, and once it's hurt, you
will never be the same again. When you pick
up the can, pick it up with this type of
motion- Watch when you leave the curb and
come to the truck. Be careful of the traffic.
When you get to the truck, in one motion,
you dump the contents of the can into the truck
Take the can back to the curb and put it in
the same place you. found it. Any questions?
Now when you have the refuse in the back of
the truck# you operate this mechanism to pack
it into the vehicle. One thing I wart to make
very clear to you; At no time, never, bend
into the truck, and at no tittie, never raach
into the truck, because cnce that blade comes

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-16-
Sequfence 11; Safety (continued)
Gildersleeve
sync sound
(continued)
Trucks
picking up
waste in
Oyster Bay
Compactor
truck; man
gets out
down, if it catches any part o£ your body,
it will take you right into that truck.
You can. lose a hand, an arm, or maybe even
your life. It is dangeroU3; it's a hazardous
job- We want you around, so be very careful."
1; 49	:0 0—1;49
James Gildecslesve, Suparinter.dant of Sanitary
Services, Oyster Bay, New York. Jim said it •—
"be careful". Without instruction like this,
a new employee wouldn't realize how important
it is to test the weight of the load before you
lift it...to lift with the legs instead of the
back. Simple rules...but important. (pause)
Refuse collection is hazardous....a higher injury
rate than policemen, coal miners, or lumberjacks.
Cuts, bruises, torn ligaments are common.-, .as are
back strain, severed limbs, hernias. (pause)
All preventable.
.42	1:49-2:31
(Music)	:03	2:31-2:34
Injuries cut productivity...increase absenteeism...
raise insurance rates.

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-17-
Sequenca 11:¦ Safety (continued)
Man jumps
on rear
step
Han shows
handle
Closeup of
the step
Buzzer
Hand
protection
shields;
points to
lights;
CU light
Large non-skid steps have been added.
:05	2:40-2:45
(Music)	:03	2:45-2:48
And big sturdy handles, :03	2:43-2:51
They can be the safety margin for the carelessness
of fatigue.	:05	2:51-2:56
(Music and effect)	:03	2:56-2:59
Clear, qtiick signals between crew and driver add
another safety factor,	:06	2:59-3:05
(Music]	;02	3:05-3:07
(Music)	:02	3:07-3:09
These hand protection shields were added.
:04	3:09-3:13
(Music)	:02	3:13-3:15
Simple things like.,,steps — handles..-buzzers...
guards...lights....but, even more important,
a comprehensive training program is essential
to prevent injuries and save lives.
: 13	3:15-3:28
(Music)	:02	3:23-3:30

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-18-
Seauer.ce 12: Queue of Trucks (tS1; : 31)
Endless
queue of
trucks
waiting
to get
into
landfill
(Music)	:02	:00-t 02
An efficiency expert would be stimulated by
this challenge....a long line of collection
trucks queued up...,waiting to dump their loads
at a landfill. (pause) The United States
can save hundreds of will ions of dollars a year
through improved collection productivity, (paus
This situation can be corrected._ Staggered
scheduling of trucks can usually solve the
problem. But often the basic system must be
improved.	:29	:02-: 31

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-19-
Sequ&nce
Transfer Stations (46'; 1:17)
Large
transfer
truck rolling
down super-
highway
Smaller
trucks enter
transfer
station;
ID card;
TV monitor;
computer;
controller
Truck in slot;
solid waste
is compacted
into mother
truck
Exterior cf
transfer
station
(Music)	:01	:00-;01
This huge tractor-trailer truck is craiw.ed
full of solid waste,
many smaller trucks.
(Music)
(Music]
.carrying the loads of
10
01
01
:01~:U
: 11-:12
:12-:13
Here come the little fallows...to the transfer,
station. These are the trucks which clog the
limited working- areas in a sanitary landfill
and congest the highways between the city and the
landfill. The transfer station is equipped to accept
both municipal trucks and private haulers. Each •
driver has an ID card. The computer records the amoun
of waste and takes care of sending bills at the end
of the month.	:26	:13-:39
(Music)	:02	:39-:41
Each truck backs into a slot end quickly dumps
its load...which is then- compacted Into the .transfer
trailer. The landfill bottleneck is broken. Also,
only the large truck has to drive the long distance
to the landfill...only one driver...not the full
crews .of each smaller truck.
-.19	: 41-1:00
(Music)	: 02	1:00-1:02
Transfer stations usually save money when a landfill

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— 20 —
Sequerice 13,- Transfer Stations (continued)
is over twenty miles out or when traffic is so
bad that trucks spend more time trying to camp
their load than collecting.
:13	1:02-1:13
(Music)	, :04	1:13-1:17

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Intentionally Blank Page

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-22-
Sgqu^ncc 14: • Automatic Pickcp (continued)
Tip-bucket
collection
truck at
work in
'folic scm,
Arizona
(Music)	:02	1:0 4-L;06
this tip-bucket collection device in Tolleson,
Arizona can collect from nearly five hundred
homes per collection-hour.
:08	1:06-1:14
(Music)	:02	1:14-1:16
Again limitations...for one, the community must
havs alleys.	:04	1:16-1:20
(Music)	:02	1:20-1:22
Still another way'to collect is being tried in
nearby Scotfcsdale, Arizona.
;G5	1:22-1:27

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-23-
'ia'{U';ace	i0: Scottsdale Mechanical Pick-Up (74'; 2:03]
Sea ttsdale
mechanical
pick-up unit
collects
from large
containers
as Marc
Stragier
describes
sync sound
(sync sound
continues)
"Scottsdale started thin system, I think,
earlier than other cities ruigh" have considered
it because An our 120-degree heat, we found
that we couldn't find workers who could stand
it through the summer. I remember one summer
when we hired 114 people to fill 40 positions
during the three months of hot summer. We
have had problems with heat prostration and
heat exhaustion and just felt it was too much
to ask our employees to work in the * oppressive
conditions that we asked of them. In this
new mechanized system, that kind of burden
is no longer present."
:44	:0D~:44
Marc Stragier, Director of Public Works in
Scottsdale, largely responsible for introducing a
mechanical system to collect a portion of Scottsdale'3
residential wastes.	:11	:44-:55
"We found there are other advantages tc the
system too. After we placed the system in
operation for a number of ir.onths, we found
that the home owner liked it. They like it
because there is plenty of room in these big
containers. They like it because the dogs
can't tip them over anc because it is easier
For t-bpra ho control the litter in their alleys-

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2 4-
Sequsr.ce 15: Scottsdale Mechanical Pick-Up (continued)
(Strac;ier
sync sound
continues)
They find that with a little experience,
they don't mind carrying the containers.
We also found that from the city's point
of view, this system is considerably less
expensive. The system you are seeing in •
operation here costs about $1.00 per home
per month, including the cost of providing
the container. That compares with a cost
of about 51.50 per month for the old manual
collection system. So we could have the
advantages of furnished containers, more
sanitation and reduced cost."
1:06
;55-2;01

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Sequence 16: Satellite Systems (41' 7 1:08)
Scooter
drives up
street and
into "
driveway;
man OMns
garage door?
throws
refuse :_r.to
scooter; "
closes door?
drives away
Scooter
driver
carrying
six garbage
cans from
back yard
to front
of house
to dump
in scooter
(Musicj	: 00- : 03
The free-wheeling little scooter is an interesting
innovation. It is appropriate in spread out
suburban areas where backyard service 1b
desired.	¦ .10	:03—; 13
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-27-
Secu&fice 18: Heuristic Routing and One-Man Crew (77' ; 2;lo;
Heuristic
routing
in
Huntington
Woods,
Michiganj
planner
works
out
routing
problems
Closeup of
map with
round-the-
bicck routes
~.ar.
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-28-
Seqtence 13: Heuristic Routing and One-Kan Crew (continued)
Huntington
'Woods one
man collection
picks up
plastic
sacks
quickly
and
efficiently
Collector
empties a
steel can
Collection
truck
continues
•Sown the
street
Once a good system is set up, i't' s
relatively easy to continue to apply it,
:15	1:06-1:21
(.Music)	:€9	1:21-1:30
Look at the excellent results in Huntington Woods.
Their studies showed that, in their particular
circumstances, the best sized crew was a one man
crew. He's equipped with a right-hand drive
truck so he can both drive and load efficiently.
The city has encouraged the use of plastic sacks.
:20	1:30-1:50
There's always cne ding-a-ling. Some die-hard decline
to give up his garbage- can. :06	1:50-1:56
(Music)	.-03	1:56-1:59
Every community can benefit from today's new ideas
in solid waste management.
:06	1:59-2:05
(Music)	:05	2:05-2:10
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-29-
Secaerce 19: Conclusion <35'; :5EQ
A dog
pilfers
a garbage
can;
a cat
sniffs
around for
something
to eat;
an empty
plastic
container
is .blown
by the wiiid
and roily
endlessly
in the
street
as cars
go by
(super credits)
(Music)	:04	:00-:04
Someone once commented that the collection of
solid waste "is analogous to a system in which,
the objective might be to- collect coal from the
buyer and return it to the mine". He added:
"...the conveyance of a nearly infinite nuriber
of commodities from a nearly infinite number
of points to a single point of deposit ... .
is unparalleled..-".
:22	:04-:26
(Music)	:02	:26 -:28
Difficult though this may be---,solid waste
management is just as significant as our other
challenging environmental problems .... and
certainly deserves as much attention.
:13	:28-:41
(Music)	:17	:41-:58
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