Residents who repeatedly contaminate their bins with incorrect matter, including plastic bags and food scraps, will soon face much harsher action, with some set to lose their collection service altogether.
Waste contractor Dalverton Waste Management is escalating its crackdown across northwest Tasmania after it rolled out bin inspections last year.
It said those audits returned disappointing results when it comes to green FOGO bins.
Households in areas from Port Sorell to Smithton have been receiving colour-coded warning tags when the wrong items are found in their green waste bins.
But from next week, there’ll be no more warnings.
Households that again ignore the repeated reminders will simply have their bins left behind, remaining on the kerb until the contamination is removed.
Collection services could be suspended for up to six weeks.
It comes amid reports that some green bins had even contained dangerous goods such as used needles.
“It would be really difficult to understand why someone would think that’s FOGO,” Veronica Shilling, Dalverton Waste Management CEO, told 7News.
She said there will now be no more chances given out.
Collection services could be suspended for up to six weeks.
(7News)
“You can put your bin out, and the driver will be instructed to leave it there, and you’ll have to deal with the material that’s in it,” Shilling said.
Devonport Mayor Alison Jarman said residents need to lift their game.
“If people don’t start thinking about that, we’re never going to get change,” she told 7News. “We need to do something now, for the future.
“Do people like being told about what to do with their waste? Probably not.
“But they’re most likely the ones that we need to educate and talk to.”
Devonport Mayor Alison Jarman urged residents to lift their game.
(7News)A few contaminated bins could ruin an entire truckload
The tougher approach comes as contamination continues to plague green waste recycling.
Dalverton Waste Management said just a small number of heavily contaminated bins can ruin an entire truckload, forcing hundreds of otherwise recyclable collections to be dumped in landfill instead.
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It said around 89 per cent of households are doing the right thing, but the remaining offenders are costing the Cradle Coast region more than $700,000 every year.
The company argued the stricter penalties are about protecting the environment as well as reducing costs, warning that contaminated waste creates long-term pollution issues and increases the expense of managing landfill.
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