Emterra adds 8 Mack EV collection trucks

Emterra Environmental, part of the Ontario-based Emterra Group, has started deploying an electric vehicle (EV) fleet consisting of eight Mack LR Electric refuse vehicles provided by Greensboro, North Carolina-based Mack Trucks.

The acquired electric-powered trucks have begun operating in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island in British Columbia and will be used in two jurisdictions on that island.

Mack calls it the largest single order of Mack LR EVs thus far in North America. Emterra Environmental also has a Mack LR electric refuse truck operating in the Peel Region of Ontario, which was delivered in October of last year.

“We are excited that Emterra Environmental and the city of Courtenay and town of Comox chose the Mack LR Electric refuse vehicle to help them accomplish their goals of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions,” Mack Trucks North America President Jonathan Randall says.

“This investment by Emterra signifies that refuse companies and municipalities recognize the importance of sustainability and trust that Mack Trucks can help them reduce their environmental footprint with a reliable, durable and quiet truck."

Emterra Environmental made the announcement during an event at Comox Marina Park in British Columbia. Josie Osborne, minister of Energy, Mines and Low-Carbon Innovation in British Columbia, was in attendance alongside representatives of Emterra Environmental, BC Hydro-Power and Mack Trucks.

According to Mack, Emterra Environmental approached the city of Courtenay and the town of Comox with the opportunity of a battery-electric vehicle (BEV) fleet as part of Emterra’s multiyear contract with them for residential curbside collection.

“The launch of our fully electric fleet in Comox Valley builds on our circular economy legacy,” says Emmie Leung, founder and CEO of Emterra Group. “We introduced the first successful municipal curbside recycling program in British Columbia in the early 1980s, and now we are introducing the first entirely zero emissions collection fleet in Canada. We are committed to leading the way through entrepreneurship, innovation and sustainability.”

“I’m thrilled to see Emterra Environmental take this significant step toward a greener future with the launch of the largest fleet of Mack LR Electric trucks in North America,” says Josie Osborne, minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation in British Columbia.

The eight Mack LR Electric models will begin fully operating in August and will service about 25,000 households and businesses. The LR Electric models are equipped with an automated side loader from the Canada-based Labrie Group and will be serviced by dealership Nanaimo Mack in British Columbia.

The truck maker says its latest EV model offers as standard a 376-kilowatt-hour total battery capacity for 42 percent more energy and increased range between vehicle charges, powered by four nickel-manganese-cobalt oxide (NMC) lithium-ion batteries.