Council inspectors go through residents’ rubbish 1,500 times a WEEK to make sure they’re recycling properly – and some homeowners are furious about the intrusion
- A council has left angry residents furious with a new waste inspection program
- Council staff on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast opening bins and looking inside
- Those who have incorrectly sorted their rubbish are issued with an ‘Uh oh!’ note
- One resident reacted to eight-week trial by calling it a ‘waste of time and money’
Council inspectors have left residents furious after going through their rubbish 1,500 times a week to ensure they’re not recycling incorrectly.
Noosa Shire on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast introduced the audit in a first for the state and is now getting its sustainability officers to open bins and look inside.
Those who have put the incorrect items in their bins are then issued with a white tag telling them where the rubbish should have been put.
Council inspectors in Noosa Shire on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast have left angry residents furious after going through their rubbish 1,500 times a week to ensure they’re not contaminating their waste (pictured a sustainability officer in the council area going through a bin)
Noosa councillor Joe Jurisevic told 7News ‘a little bit of advice and education’ was the objective of the new policy – which is currently halfway through its eight-week duration.
During their 1,500 weekly visit to homes in their council area, inspection officers may in some cases also refuse to empty the bin because it was contaminated with the wrong items.
Common mistakes residents in the council area are making, Mr Jurisevic told ABC News, include putting soft plastics and Styrofoam in the wrong bin.
Those who are using the bins properly receive a notice that says ‘thank you for doing your bit’.
‘When it is explained and understood and as the process goes on week in, week out we’re finding people are appreciating the education,’ Jurisevic said.
But some residents have hit out at the initiative.
Noosa councillor Joe Jurisevic said ‘a little bit of advice and education’ was the objective of the new policy – which is currently halfway through its eight-week duration (stock image)
‘Waste of time and money. What will they be checking next?’ one person wrote on a community Facebook page.
‘They will be in your backyard soon,’ another said.
It comes after a resident in Moreland Council in Melbourne’s north shared a photo last week of an ‘Oh no’ tag attached to a bin saying soft plastics had been left in the recycling bin.
It is understood the council’s bin inspection program is done at random times throughout the year – with residents getting one of three labels.
Those who have recycled correctly with no contamination will receive a notice saying ‘Thank you’.
A resident in the Moreland Council area of Melbourne posted this picture last week and said their street was littered with warning labels attached to bins