Port Phillip Council cracks down on contaminated recycling bins

A Melbourne council’s crackdown on residents’ recycling habits has been labelled “an invasion of privacy” — and it comes at a cost to ratepayers.

Port Phillip Council is hoping to re-educate people on how to recycle properly.

Port Phillip Council has come under fire for “shaming” residents over their recycling mistakes.

As part of its “recycling reset” program, the council has threatened to stop collecting bins or remove them entirely if people don’t clean up their recycling act.

The six-month program, which is costing ratepayers $50,000, comes after the council reported a 25 per cent spike in recycling bin contamination during COVID-19, with people shoving in more non-recyclable materials.

Mayor Louise Crawford said the program aimed to drive down processing fees, with the council forking out about an extra $10,000 a month to sift through contaminated recycling.

On collection days, workers “rummage” through bins and leave notes them telling residents what they’ve done wrong, including failing to properly rinse containers.

If there is contamination on follow-up visits, the bin could be “stickered shut” and won’t be collected until the offending item is removed.

Residents who recycle properly will get a ‘well done’ label posted on their bin. And bins which get top marks over three inspections will be entered into a prize draw to win one of five vouchers each month.

The council has also warned bins with “extreme incidents of ongoing contamination” could be removed altogether.

But the move has been labelled as a “shaming exercise” and “an invasion of privacy” by some people.

One Elwood woman, who did not want to be named, said she was “utterly embarrassed my trash is being inspected”.

“I don’t think it’s right that council is rummaging through my bin and then judging me based on what’s inside.”

Another woman received a tag telling her to “please rinse containers” before putting them in the bin.

Bella D’Abrera, from the Institute of Public Affairs, said the council’s priorities were “completely skewed”.

“While thousands of Victorians have lost their jobs and businesses have been smashed in the past year, the council is devoting its resources to shaming people who it deems have put the wrong items in their recycling bins,” she said.

“Using ratepayers’ money to employ someone to rifle through their bins is a creepy intrusion on the privacy of its residents.

“The council believes that one of the most pressing issues is failure of its ratepayers to properly rinse plastic containers.

“This kind of intrusive initiative is one step away from issuing fines.”

But others have welcomed the move, praising the council for its “helpful suggestions”.

In a Facebook post, one woman wrote: “Council are tagging our recycle bins to try help us to do it right. Last week they wrote a note on mine NOT to put paper towels or tissues — I had no idea these were a no-no”.

Another man said: “I’ve always assumed I knew what could go in the recycling bin but until now didn’t realise I wasn’t do it right. This will help me to clean up my act, so to speak”.

The council said putting the wrong items — such as soft plastic, plastic bags, nappies and ceramic cups — in recycling bins increases the cost of processing waste and could pose a risk to workers at sorting centres.

Cr Crawford said the recycling reset was not about shaming residents.

“It’s an opportunity for us to remind and re-educate out community about their recycling habits to save costs and reduce the amount of recyclables having to be sent to landfill,” she said.

She said in June last year extra processing charges had increased up to $18,900 due to incorrectly recycled items found in bins.

But since the program started in November, there had been an improvement in recycling behaviours, with some areas recording a 26 per cent reduction in contamination.