Exposed bin bags set to be banned from Dublin city streets

Exposed and unprotected plastic bin bags are set to be banned from Dublin city’s streets, following a report from Dublin City Council.

Legislation to end their use was originally introduced eight years ago but more than 1,000 streets were exempt from the rule because the streetscape was deemed unsuitable for the installation of bins.

In 2023 the local authority will trial the use of seagull-proof sacks in an effort to reduce litter on the streets, often caused by birds ripping open plastic bin bags.

At an Environment SPC meeting last week, councillors heard that the “waste in plastic bags has been causing considerable litter problems for Dublin City and the Waste Management Department” due to the “ease” at which they can be “torn by seagulls and other urban animals.”

In 2019, the council held a competition for innovate solutions to the problem of on-street waste which would be “durable, rigid, capable of withstanding normal wear and tear, be lightweight and portable” and preferably “collapsible or foldable so that it may be stored with minimal intrusion on commercial or domestic settings”.

Starting in October 2021, the council trialled the “Bagbin”, a collapsible waste container that protects bin bags from being easily accessible to animals.

The container was rolled out to 86 locations across the city and although it “achieves the required result of reducing litter from ripped bags provided it is used properly”, there were some “challenges” using the product.

The local authority says it will now trial the use of a woven plastic gull-proof bag which can hold up to six bin bags at a time.

A similar product is used widespread in Edinburgh.

When the trial finishes in two years’ time, councillors will be presented with a report detailing the effectiveness of the sacks.

Although the initiative was largely welcomed by councillors, some raised concerns about condition of the bag.

“I can just imagine that on a rainy day with the juice from bins that sometime comes out, it could become quite a manky thing if you’re living in a small terraced house,” committee chair and Green Party councillor Michael Pidgeon said.

Fianna Fáil’s Deirdre Heney said the name of the bag should be reconsidered as to not demonise seagulls.

“I would hope wildlife and protected bird species wouldn’t be denigrated,” she said.

“I would ask that it would be carefully posed that they’re not the problem that we’re the problem – we’re putting the waste out, we’re feeding them.”