In a quiet Melbourne suburb, a resident’s discovery has sparked a heated debate about privacy, waste management, and the lengths to which local councils will go to monitor recycling habits. The controversy unfolded when a man, after being reprimanded for his recycling practices, found a ‘naughty note’ and a secretive device attached to his wheelie bin, leading him to accuse the council of ‘snooping’.
The resident was taken aback when he received a sticker in his bin, a reminder from the council that he had incorrectly recycled plastic bottles by leaving the lids on. But it was the small circular disc, discreetly tucked under the lip of the bin, that truly caught his attention. In a video that quickly gained traction on social media, the man expressed his concerns: ‘Did you know that council even track what you throw out? They’ve got a chip in here and they’re monitoring what you throw out [into] the truck.’
The device in question is a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, a technology that is not as Orwellian as it might seem at first glance. A garbage man chimed in on the online discussion, explaining that these tags serve as a ‘property ID tag’ to help identify bins if they’re stolen or accidentally fall into the truck’s packer. More intriguingly, he mentioned that the tags could assist in tracing contamination back to the source, indicating a more sophisticated use of the technology.
Why Australian councils track bin contents may not be as sinister as some believe. The City of Casey in Victoria, where the concerned resident lives, is currently conducting a bin audit. The purpose of this audit is to ensure that residents are ‘paying for the bins that they are currently using’, as stated on the council’s website. This means that residents with more bins than they are paying for have the option to either remove the excess bins or pay the additional fees.
The practice of monitoring bins is not new or unique to the City of Casey. Last year, a Port Adelaide resident discovered a similar RFID device in their bin, which sparked questions about public awareness of such monitoring. The technology allows councils to gather data on ‘presentation rates and if bins were contaminated or overfull’, according to the company managing the trackers. This system has been in place since at least 2012 in some Local Government Areas (LGAs).
Several LGAs, including those governed by Randwick City Council in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, have been using bin monitoring devices for even longer, dating back to 2008. These RFID chips enable waste collection trucks to register each bin lift and log it against the bin’s location, creating a more efficient and accountable waste management system.
While some online commentators have labelled the Melbourne man ‘paranoid’, it’s clear that residents are divided on the use of technology to track bin contents. While some see it as a necessary tool for better waste management, others feel their privacy is being invaded.
What do you think about councils using RFID tags to monitor bins? Do you believe this is an invasion of privacy or an effective waste management tool? We’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences—drop a comment below and join the conversation!
Also read: When NSW’s organic waste law kicks in: Suburbs face a stinky surprise
