Chip and bin plan is 'rubbish'

Plans to introduce high-tech wheelie bins so that householders can be charged for the amount of garbage they produce have been trashed by silicon.com readers.

The proposals were put forward by the Local Government Association as a way for councils to run waste charging schemes if the government gives them the go-ahead.

But silicon.com readers have warned the pay-per-bin may have some unpleasant side-effects.

"Whenever local government has tried waste disposal charging, fly tipping goes up," said reader Mark Hosey. He added: "We are not responsible for the majority of waste that ends up in our bins. It's manufacturers and retailers that make rubbish, not individuals."

Another anonymous reader added: "People will just dump their waste anywhere then, to save paying for it. The councils might save on collection but it will cost more in effort and the health implications to clean up after the fly tipping."

And if they aren't fly-tipping, chip and bin evaders might be loading up their next door neighbour's bin instead. "Will we have to lock our wheelie bins?" asked reader Alan Smith, wondering whether householders will be forced to protect their bins to prevent people dumping their rubbish in them to save on garbage fees.

Meanwhile IT consultant John Wilson pointed out the government might be going after the wrong target: "It's about time the authorities stopped picking on the easy targets (the public) and got serious about the big polluters (industry). Better to deal with the problems at source, rather than only persecute the end user."