Local British government to begin monitoring residents’ trash
A local government in the UK’s South Yorkshire county will begin monitoring residents’ trash, with fines of up to £2,500 ($3,182) imposed on those who place incorrect items in the bins.
Rotherham’s local council has announced new measures to crack down on waste violations. Trash collectors will inspect all garbage bins to check whether residents have placed any “wrong” items inside. Penalties may be issued to violators, such as those who place a “contaminated item” in a recycling bin. Contaminated items are anything that is not recyclable, but they can also include recyclable objects. A greeting card, for example, must be placed in the recycling bin, but a glittery card is forbidden.
The town’s 271,000 residents are also prohibited from leaving their trash bins outside past 7:00 PM on collection day.
Reward and punishment
These rules will be enforced via a new traffic light system. First-time violators will receive a yellow warning tag on their bins, second-time violators will receive an orange tag with a warning letter, and third-time offenders a red tag and a penalty between £80 ($101) to £400 ($509). Residents who do not pay the penalty may be fined £2,500. “Contaminated” bins will not be collected until the contaminated items are removed.
Residents who have been found in violation but reform their ways and abide by the council’s rules will be rewarded with a green tag “to reinforce positive behavior,” according to the Daily Mail.
“All bins will be visually checked prior to collection and any recycling or garden waste container found to be contaminated will not be emptied,” said Rotherham Head of Environmental Services Barry Connolly. “A contamination tag will be placed on the bin informing of the non-collection and contamination. Subsequent collections will only be made once the contamination has been removed and will only be on the next collection day. Contaminants should be removed and placed in an appropriate container for collection.”
Garbage trucks will be outfitted with technology to monitor residents’ compliance with the rules.
