15 Reasons To Lock Up & Secure Your Rubbish Bins
When rubbish bins are left unsecured at homes and businesses, they can lead to a range of serious issues, including security risks, safety hazards, and operational challenges. These could lead to theft, identity fraud, vandalism, pest infestations, and potential legal troubles.
It's important to lock the bins or enclose them and provide training to residents and employers about correct waste management. We can create a safer, cleaner, and more efficient environment by taking proactive steps to secure rubbish bins.
This article will describe 15 practical reasons to improve waste safety, prevent contamination, and protect community spaces.
Why Securing Your Rubbish Bins Matters
Securing garbage bins is necessary for privacy protection, crime prevention, hygiene improvement, and environmental protection.
New South Wales uses red bins for general waste meant for landfills and yellow bins specifically used for recyclable materials, with each one prescribing what can and cannot be disposed of.
NSW Red Bin System (General Waste).
The red bin is for general household rubbish, which cannot be recycled or composted, with all contents going to landfill.
Food scraps, disposable nappies, and plastics, including bags, wrappers, containers, broken glass, and ceramics, go in this bin. The bin also accepts disposable coffee cups, old clothes or shoes that cannot be donated, cigarette butts, hygiene products, etc.
Hazardous chemicals, batteries, medical waste, building/demolition waste, electronic and car parts, liquid wastes, as well as recyclables such as plastic bottles or metal containers, are not accepted. Collection usually occurs weekly, has three bin sizes of 80L, 120L, or 240L, and most support a maximum weight restriction of about 70-80kg to ensure safety in collection.
Biodegradable landfilled waste releases methane and other air pollutants. This is why residents must practice responsible bin management to reduce litter, illegal dumping, and contamination.
15 Practical Reasons To Secure Your Garbage Bins
1. Prevents animals from scattering waste.
Securing your bin properly discourages animals from scattering the rubbish around your property or neighbourhood. Trash bins attract animals such as raccoons, squirrels, bears, and dogs due to the smell of food.
2. Stops people dumping their rubbish in your bin.
Illegal dumping can fill the bins quickly, leading to overflow and increased rubbish removal fees or fines. Securing bins limits access to authorised residents, assisting with waste volume and cost management.
3. Reduces the risk of recycling contamination.
Secured bins restrict unauthorised access and prevent rubbish from being dumped into recycling bins or vice versa. This separation is important because contaminants like food waste, plastic bags, or non-recyclables mixed with recyclables degrade the quality of recycled materials.
4. Deters scavengers from going through your bins.
Locking your trash bins prevents animals from either tipping them over or prying open the lids, greatly reducing the consequent scattering of litter. Moreover, secured bins will ensure that scavengers like raccoons will keep them out of your house’s vicinity or business. You’ll be clean and free from health risks associated with animal waste and scattered residues.
5. Prevents bin theft or vandalism.
Secured bins restrict access, limiting the tendency of vandals to search through trash, spill contents, or destroy bins and maintaining local cleanliness. Through restricting access, owners mitigate risks regarding injury and property damage caused by vandalised bins.
6. Reduces smells and pest attraction.
Locked and secured bins keep stinky gases in, which greatly minimises the strength of unpleasant smells in surrounding spaces. This provides a fresher environment indoors and outdoors, reducing unwanted odours and repelling pests like rodents, insects, and wildlife that threaten to take over waste storage spaces.
7. Keeps bins upright in windy weather.
Securing or anchoring bins to immovable objects fixes them against strong wind gusts, preventing them from toppling and spilling their contents. Secured bins prevent trash from scattering, and keep neighbourhoods free from unwanted litter and cleanup.
8. Protect your driveway or nature strip from litter.
When rubbish bins are not locked or left open, wind, animals, and people can easily scatter litter across your premises. This produces unsightly rubbish heaps and pollutes the natural environment around you. Locked or properly closed rubbish bins keep the trash inside and stop litter from escaping and cluttering your driveway and the environment.
9. Prevents children or pets from accessing unsafe materials.
Locking and securing garbage bins keep children and pets away from possible harmful or dangerous objects that are usually found in trash. Garbage tends to have sharp objects, poisonous chemicals, broken glass, rotten food, and medicines that can cause serious harm to curious children and pets if opened.
10. Stops commercial waste from being illegally dumped in residential bins.
Secured or locked bins limit access so that only residents or qualified users have permission to dispose of waste. This prevents commercial waste collectors or unlicensed individuals from emptying large quantities of harmful content into residential dumpsters.
11. Maintains neighbourhood tidiness.
Securing your rubbish bin helps maintain clean, organised, and pleasing neighbourhoods. Properly locked or contained bins prevent littering from spilling or being blown away by wind and animals, resulting in unpleasant litter and pollution.
12. Supports council waste collection requirements.
Numerous NSW and Australian councils demand bins to be secured using lockable lids or enclosures to satisfy safety, hygiene, and environmental regulations. Secured bins stop spillage, litter, and contamination, assisting councils in keeping public areas clean.
13. Prevents overfilling before collection day.
Secured or locked bins prevent neighbours, passersby, or unauthorised individuals from dumping additional trash in your bins. Locked bins with secured lids keep garbage within, keep wind from blowing lids open, and keep trash covered from animals digging through. This all helps to preserve bin capacity and avoid overflow.
14. Reduces the risk of litter ending up in waterways.
Locking rubbish bins keeps trash out of waterways that affect aquatic creatures. If bins are not locked or overfilled, trash is likely to get blown or washed into the surrounding rivers, lakes, and oceans during storms or gusts of wind. This significantly adds to water pollution and harms aquatic ecosystems.
15. Shows community responsibility and leadership.
Locked or secured bins avoid unauthorised dumping, littering, and scavenging, keeping streets and public areas clean. This preserves the visual beauty of the neighbourhood and minimises health risks brought about by scattered waste.
NSW Council Guidelines on Bin Security
Complying with council guidelines regarding bin security, residents assist in providing secure, effective, and sanitary waste collection services. Moreover, they keep neighbourhoods clean and up to community standards.
- Put your bins out the evening before collection on the kerb or footpath, with the wheels towards your house and lids towards the street.
- Leave a space of around 1 metre between bins so that trucks can easily pick them up. Don't park cars in front of bins or place bins under low-hanging branches.
- Always shut bin lids. Open or full bins will not be emptied and may attract pests or become foul-smelling.
- Keep bins out of sight once emptied, such as in your garden, garage, or bin enclosure, to keep your place clean and uncluttered.
- Ensure lids are closed and bins are tightly shut to prevent animals from entering.
- Regularly clean your bins to prevent foul odours and pests.
Allowing bins to overflow or have lids left open may result in the refusal of collection by councils and the issuing of subsequent warning letters or fines.
Non-compliance may be punishable with a fine of $312 following the issuing of warnings. Offences committed repeatedly or of extreme waste management negligence can lead to more severe measures such as suspension of service or removal of bins.
How All Gone Rubbish Removals Supports Responsible Waste Management
All Gone Rubbish Removals strives to reduce its environmental footprint with environmentally responsible waste management techniques. We facilitate the correct sorting, recycling, and ecologically safe residential and commercial waste dumping, focusing on sustainability and environmental practices.
We provide same-day rubbish removal services across Sydney, the Central Coast, Gosford, Newcastle, and the Gold Coast. Call us today at 0420 102 118 and book before 2 PM for your area's best-priced same-day rubbish removal service! Don't worry about the lifting; it's on us.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How do I secure my rubbish bins safely?
To secure your rubbish bins, use animal-proof and lockable bins, opt for appropriate physical securing practices, and undertake lid and odour control.
2. What happens if my bin is vandalised or stolen?
If you have a vandalised rubbish bin (spray-painted, damaged, or destroyed), it may no longer be usable. This may lead to inconvenience and possible fines due to improper waste disposal. A damaged bin can no longer contain waste effectively and will attract unwanted pests, contributing to litter problems.
If bins are stolen, they must be replaced immediately to comply with local waste disposal regulations. However, replacement can incur additional costs since the new bin must meet city standards to avoid penalties. Also, this situation can disrupt scheduled waste collection and create cleanliness issues in the neighbourhood.
3. Can I lock my council-provided bins?
Yes. Most councils permit locking bins with specialised lockable lids or external locks to secure against unauthorised access, theft, or animals getting into them.
4. What are the risks of leaving bins unsecured?
Open rubbish or recycling bins can cause a variety of security, health, environmental, and financial issues. Likewise, it includes:
- Data breaches and identity theft
- Theft and vandalism
- Pest and wildlife infestation
- Environmental pollution and litter
- Legal and financial fines
- Refusals to collect and disruption of service
5. Does All Gone Rubbish Removals help with excess waste overflow?
Absolutely! Our same-day rubbish collection ensures you won’t have overflowing skip bins or even need to hire one. Besides, we’ll leave your area clean after removing the rubbish.
Driven by a passion for helping customers achieve clutter-free spaces, All Gone Rubbish Removals has become a go-to resource for waste management, featuring over 100 expert articles on rubbish removal and sustainability. Aaron’s dedication to efficiency and customer satisfaction ensures his business remains a leader in the industry.
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