The waste collector arrives in a helicopter

The Swedish Tourist Association (STF), the largest Swedish voluntary organization, is arranging activities close to nature all over Sweden. It operates 315 youth hostels, eight mountain lodges, and about 40 mountain cabins in the remote countryside.

In the north-western part of the country in the scenic mountains close to the Norwegian border, you find STF Helags - one of STF's largest cabin sites. It is situated at an altitude of 1043 m above the sea-level at the foot of the Helags massif 18 km from the nearest village. What is even more remarkable is that the place is located 12 km away from the nearest road!

The remote location makes all transportation of provisions as well as waste costly and inconvenient. The waste handling will be improved however since a Little Elephant compactor from Orwak recently made an appearance in the wilderness!

At STF Helags there are 74 beds in four buildings, cooking facilities are available for the guests and a small restaurant is serving breakfast and light meals. Despite its secluded location 5000 guests visit the mountain cabin every year. The winter tourists make a stopover on their tours and in summer there are plenty of hikers following the trails through the breathtaking scenery. At 1797 m above the sea-level, Helags is the highest peak in the country south of the Arctic Circle and it is also close to the Helags glacier, the most southern glacier in Sweden.

The visitors produce a lot of waste, which is a great problem due to the limited means of transportation. Staffan Lindberg, area manager of the site, comments:

“During one season enough garbage is produced up there to fill a large double garage and it is not like living in a village where the waste truck shows up every week. In winter we use the snowmobile to dispose of the waste. In summer the landscape is inaccessible to all vehicles and then the garbage is collected by helicopter. A net is wrapped around the garbage bags and attached to the bottom of the helicopter and that is how we bring the garbage to the civilization. Considering the transportation cost you need to think twice before you throw away a single bag at the Helags cabin.”

Little Elephant chooses the road less traveled and rides a snowmobile!

Staffan Lindberg has been thinking about how to reduce the volume of the waste for quite some time. When he learned about Orwak and the Top-Loading Little Elephant compactor, he felt that this could be the solution - the waste management equipment -he had been looking for.

“Little Elephant seems to have a great waste compaction ratio and that is the most important feature of the waste management equipment in this case. In winter there will be much fewer runs by the snowmobile and in summer the helicopter service will be less expensive if the waste is compacted properly.”

Since March 2006 a Little Elephant compactor (TLE 80) with two BOB:s is in place on trial in the new little waste storage at STF Helags. The BOB enables compaction of general waste in plastic sacks. Due to its small size Little Elephant fits just fine into the storage. It is also a good thing that the compactor is small and lightweight considering the transportation conditions.

Like all deliveries in winter Little Elephant was brought to the remote mountain cabin on a snowmobile! The circumstances are certainly unique, but then again Little Elephant aims to be on the road less traveled!