Belfast bin collections: New red tag system hailed a success but councillors not happy

A new tagging system to encourage residents to stop overflowing bins and put items in the right bins started roll-out in Belfast in the summer.

Bins that breach the new rules receive a first warning amber tag. From September, red tags have been issued for bins which continue to overflow, or have a liner, and will not be collected according to the council.

The new rules state that a bin must not be overflowing, the lid must be closed, there must not be a bin liner lining the inside of the bin, no extra bin bags will be collected beside the bin, and only one large black bin, which should be clearly marked, will be collected per household.

Figures from council officials, revealed to elected representatives at the City Hall People and Communities Committee last week, state that only 0.5 percent of all bins in the city have received red tags.

The officer report states: “In total, 1,484 red tags were issued during the first two full collection cycles (four weeks). Non-collection due to bin liners is a relatively minor issue in terms of the number of cases reported.

“The percentage of red-tagged bins to overall bins collected, is around 0.5 percent. Only 37 bins received their second consecutive red tag after the first two full collection cycles.”

However, elected representatives questioned the system’s efficacy in fly-tipping hotspots like the Holyland and Stranmillis, and pushed for answers on what the council would do if overfilled bins were simply left in the street permanently by their owners.

DUP Councillor Ruth Brooks said: “I am unhappy at the moment with the bins policy. We have rolled out the policy and the tagging, and now we are seeing some of the issues coming through.”

She pointed out examples of residents reporting bins in her district electoral area which had been left out with lids filled to the brim, not overflowing, but which had been “left out to rot” since September, and residents were complaining about the smell.

She said: “When I raised this with Cleansing, the policy became really, really unclear. I understand decisions are made informally about overflowing bins. If rubbish is flowing out of a bin and on the ground, cleansing will step in, but if the rubbish is piled high, it is red-tagged, and it is no man’s responsibility.

“There is no formal policy or escalation steps as far as I am aware. We are now getting to the situation where bins are being left for weeks.

"I have constituents who are trying to raise it through the customer hub and didn’t get any response. Residents are frustrated, and I feel I am firefighting on this issue.” She said: “It really reinforces the need for clarity on responsibility.”

The council director replied: “Statistics will outline that by and large the majority of bins are being collected. Only 0.5 percent of our bins in the last weeks have actually received a red tag.

“If somebody leaves their bin, and it is overfilled, it is their responsibility to top that bin, and it is their responsibility to present it in a safe manner for our operatives. We have been going back to deal with bins where it has been our fault, if we have missed a collection.”

He said: “We are aware of small pockets where problems will occur, and we always expected that, and the next phase is to mop those up, concentrating on the areas and linking in with the householders, enforcement teams and management companies.

“We won’t leave the bins out indefinitely. We will be putting it to the householder to empty their bin, but in certain circumstances, where the bin is abandoned, that bin will have to be removed.”

Sinn Féin Councillor Claire Canavan said: “If I said to a constituent, as long as your bin is overfilled it is not getting emptied, you may get up empty it yourself and bring (the waste) to your nearest amenity centre – that is just not going to go down well.

“And it will be the same response with staff. I don’t envy them having to go and wrap doors to say to people they are not going to empty it as a council because it falls outside policy.

“It is not as simple as that, and we need a plan on how long we let the bin lie. The residents will say “we’re not emptying it” and the council will say “we’re not emptying it” – who gives? It just seems absurd. And some of our enforcement officers feel like they are in the middle of it.”

SDLP Councillor Gary McKeown said: “While a lot of what is being implemented will hopefully work in the majority of areas, there are those places where there are particular idiosyncrasies, such as Stranmillis Village, Lower Lisburn Road and the Holylands.

“I know there remains significant challenges for residents and obviously council staff in dealing with the issues there, in terms of overfilled bins, flytipping, and litter being distributed across the entries and into the street. That is because either there aren’t enough bins for the people living there, as a result of the over-proliferation of HMOs, or in fact some members of the community just don’t care for their neighbours.

“There obviously needs to be a particular focus on a model that works for those areas.”

Councillor Brooks made a proposal, backed by the elected members, for council officers to come back with a report detailing when the council formally would declare a bin to be abandoned, a timeframe for this, and details of contact in this regard with the management companies.