The people of Greater Toronto Area have always understood that road sweeping is essential to a healthy life. Road dusts, which are microscopic particulate matter, have long been studied to cause various respiratory diseases to humans. Aside from this, road dusts have been known to be significant constituents of storm water runoffs that carry toxicity.
This, in turn, is passed on to the waterways where fishes and wildlife are also affected. Road dusts originate from emissions of industrial facilities and from cars and trucks that settle on the roads, residues from spilled car oil or worn-out car tires, and natural breakdown of city pavements. To deal with this problem, GTA, in the Ontario province, supports road sweeping as a means of removing pollutants from the city streets.
However, what once was a highly acceptable solution to air and water pollution, road sweeping fell out of favour after studies have shown that sweepers were not effective in decreasing pollutant load. Particularly, the National Urban Runoff Program (NURP) has shown conclusive evidences based on their performance monitoring of road sweeping. These pilot studies support the conclusion that road sweeping programs fail to reduce the concentration of pollutants to acceptable levels.
Why does road sweeping seem to fail in its objective? The primary reason for this poor performance is the inability of mechanical sweepers during that time to pick up fine fragments of road dusts that carry a substantial portion of toxic load. Performance is also limited to the area on which the sweepers are delegated.
Modern technology has enhanced road sweeping equipment. Today, there are three basic sweeping technologies. First, traditional mechanical sweepers with broom and conveyor belt are used. They make use of brushes and water spray that sweep road dusts. Collected debris is then carried on to a hopper using the conveyor belt. Second, vacuum-assisted sweepers are also available for use. Like the traditional sweeper, this makes use of brushes and water spray to moisten the streets for better dust control. Vacuum-assisted sweepers then suck loosened debris directly onto the hopper. Enviro Whirl Technologies has developed a vacuum-assisted dry sweeper which has the ability to pick up even the finest particulate matter.
Also, unlike other sweepers, this works effectively even in wet or frozen conditions. This recent innovation uses a dry broom to loosen particles and a high-powered vacuum that efficiently picks up all road dusts. Lastly, regenerative air sweepers may be used. This blasts air onto the street surface to loosen road dusts and promptly vacuums them into the hopper.
The question naturally arises: have these innovations translate to higher reduction in air particulate level? With each technology being used individually, the answer is no. A street sweeping study was done which tested four types of road sweeping to determine the most effective method. The research team concluded that the combination of mechanical sweeping, vacuuming and flushing is effective in reducing road dusts of the swept area.
The study also concluded that frequency of sweeping is another factor that increases effectiveness of road sweeping; and they found that a minimum of three times per week help reduce the concentration of pollutants in the area. Tandem, combination sweeping and frequent passes have then been implemented ever since.
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