Passers-by are blamed for bin problems

Passers-by may be at the root of bin collection problems in Dunblane and Bridge of Allan, says a local councillor.

Ward councillor Douglas Dodds is keen to raise the issue of “contaminated”bins after being contacted by constituents.

He says while householders may or may not be sorting their waste appropriately, people randomly dumping the wrong type of waste in the bins as they pass can also cause problems.

He was recently contacted by residents living near the Allanwater Bridge in Bridge of Allan.

Bins for cardboard had been put out but contaminated with food waste, which was then added to by passers-by.

When the council’s waste services team then came along to empty the bins they were unable to as it could have ruined the entire lorryful of cardboard and paper.

Councillor Dodds said: “This is a problem for the council’s waste services and the more problems there are similar to the one I recently encountered, then the more this detracts from the job the service should be doing - collecting our bins on time.”

Councillor Dodds said he also knocked on doors in the area but could not find out whose bins they were. He arranged for waste services to collect them separately.

“This was done very quickly and efficiently immediately after I raised the issue,”he added.

“A lot of people contact me when their bins are not collected on time. Fair enough we should expect them emptied when they should be, however one of the problems the collection teams face on a regular basis is the wrong waste in the wrong bin. This affects the efficiency of the whole service and adds to the costs.

“We are all quick to criticise any waste at the council when it comes to our money but what I do not understand is people not making an effort to sort their waste properly. This applies to visitors, residents, students and anyone else.”