Temporary solution for busy street bins

Published on 24 November 2020

While a full audit of street bins across the region is underway, those located in busy holiday locations including Forster, Tuncurry and Old Bar will be targeted for temporary relief in the lead-up to the peak tourist season.

The temporary measure pre-empts a much larger region-wide initiative to upgrade public place litterbins, expected to commence after the audit phase is completed mid-next year.

To meet the immediate needs of locals and visiting holiday-makers in some of our busier centres, wheelie bins will replace the existing units to provide greater capacity and a cleaner streetscape.

“Some of our public litterbins are weathered and deteriorating, and many are too small to cater for the volume of waste being disposed of by people on the go”, explained Amy Hill, MidCoast Council’s Waste Program Coordinator. “Our short-term goal is to address overflowing bins in our tourist locations before the holiday period, but over the longer-term we are looking to develop a public litterbin strategy that meets the needs of our communities in all locations at all times of the year”.

In this temporary stage, high-traffic areas such as Wharf Street in Forster will see the ageing units removed and wheelie bins installed on stands in their place. The work will be undertaken by Council crews over the next 3 – 4 weeks, for completion before the beginning of the school holidays.

“This is a temporary solution, but the longer-term project of developing a consistent, functional and visually appealing solution to public litterbins across the entire region is something to look forward to”, Amy said.

High on the list of considerations for the strategy is the need to minimise litter overflow and on-going maintenance, and to keep local streets clean and hygienic.

Locals and tourists alike are reminded to ‘do the right thing’ and dispose of litter responsibly. Where bins are unavailable or overflowing, please take your rubbish with you. For more information about waste disposal across the MidCoast, visit www.midcoast.nsw.gov.au/waste