Attila

Talking bins

Monday, 2. June 2008, 11:26:15

Copenhagen residents will maybe soon be rewarded with fine words of praise when they put rubbish in the new garbage bins in parts of the city.

In the wake of recent polls showing that the city is among Europe's dirtiest, local councillors are making concerted efforts to turn the tide and aim to be the cleanest capital of the continent by 2015.

In Nyhavn, one of the trial areas, the bins will thank passers-by for remembering to put rubbish in them. And in Gothersgade street, leading off the King's Square, the containers will dazzle pedestrians with their eloquence: 'Together we can keep the city clean.'

Personally I don't think it makes a difference for the amount of garbage in Copenhagen whether the bins talk or not. I haven't seen the bins myself yet, but I will definitely look out for them.

ChlamydiaIndiana Jones IV

Comments

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Cois # 2. June 2008, 11:47

I foresee much more garbage in those bins..

*imagines kids throwing stuff in just to hear the bin speak* c'mon George.. Throw your shoe in so the bin can say thanks..

Attila # 2. June 2008, 11:53

Good point Cois!

"Throw the wolfies in and hear everybody say thank you!"

Cois # 2. June 2008, 12:00

Cat!

Moesring # 2. June 2008, 12:13

What a waste. I can already guarantee that talking bins will be quite a bit more costly than regular bins. So funding is being diverted from worthwhile causes to pay for "special" bins - special just because they talk.

The novelty factor will soon wear off. In fact I foresee some people complaining about the incessant noise caused by the bins.

If the bins gave people money on the other hand...

Dacotah # 2. June 2008, 12:31

Odd, talking garbage bins.

Attila # 2. June 2008, 13:59

@ Cois

@ Moe ~ I think you're right, the bins are only interesting in the beginning. The give out money for trash-principle is good though, I am sure it would help a lot more.

@ Carol ~ Yes, it's beginning to be a little bit weird.

Darko # 2. June 2008, 14:17

It is even worse than the talking scales

In the middle of night, you throw some garbage and wake everyone with a loud THANK YOU FOR KEEPING OUR TOWN CLEAN!!!

Dacotah # 2. June 2008, 16:42

Moesring # 2. June 2008, 17:37

The problem with bins giving out money is that people would vandalise the bins to get to the money inside. Either that, or people would find ways to fool the bin into giving money without needing to put anything in.

Kimmie # 2. June 2008, 18:24

Bit of a strange thing to do...

The Dark Furie # 2. June 2008, 18:31

How long before someone falls in love with one.

r♡se # 2. June 2008, 21:00

Hmmm... Weird. I think a talking bin would only annoy me.

Cois # 2. June 2008, 22:17

they're taking over I tell you..

Stomyr # 2. June 2008, 23:14

And *Weird*

theoddbod # 4. June 2008, 22:34

What if you take something out? Does it yell at you?

Attila # 5. June 2008, 05:29

That would really be something: "Stop the thief! Stop the thief!"

Cois # 6. June 2008, 02:08

You know its trash in there right?

or do you leave your valuables in a dumpster near you?

Attila # 6. June 2008, 04:50

I know it's trash, but I often see especially elder people picking up cans and bottles from the bin, in order to get the deposit for them.

Cois # 7. June 2008, 09:41

Stop thief!

The Dark Furie # 7. June 2008, 10:31

They don't do that here anymore yet they're determined to recycle. Go figure.

Attila # 7. June 2008, 10:36

No deposit for bottles and cans? Don't they just throw them everywhere then?

theoddbod # 7. June 2008, 10:41

My parents have been recycling loads of things for over 20 years, irrespective of any deposit. Some of the recent changes apparently make it harder for them to do that.

Attila # 7. June 2008, 10:45

What changes have been made recently?

The Dark Furie # 7. June 2008, 10:52

There's a limit on how trash is collected now. If the bin lid is even slightly open they wont collect it. Only one bin per household of six people and it's collected fortnightly at most. You get one for trash and two for seperate forms of recycling.

Basically if you recycle lots then they wont take it.

Attila # 7. June 2008, 10:53

That is ridiculous, don't people just throw it elsewhere then? It must be better if they collected it!

theoddbod # 7. June 2008, 11:10

Actually, ours is still a weekly collection and we only have a big standard bin and a little bin for tins and cans. There are lots of variations across the country.
My parents take glass bottles and papers separately themselves to be recycled. They do something with the plastics too, but I'm not sure what.

Over here, Tilla, sometimes they'll sue if your bin is overflowing or fine you if you put it out a day early. And health and safety regs mean that the binmen aren't allowed to do the heavy ones, so we have the situation where a 78-year-old woman had to push her bin to the road for collection.

r♡se # 7. June 2008, 12:05

The Dark Furie # 7. June 2008, 13:05

The latest is that they wont take the bin if it's too heavy to pull with two fingers.

Moesring # 7. June 2008, 13:27

Thankfully I have yet to be affected by the fortnightly collections. As I remember, we had it for a week or two then the local elections were due and the bin schedules mysteriously reverted back to weekly. And I still haven't had any problems with leaving six bin bags to be collected.

My biggest gripe is that, as far as I am aware, we still don't get any recycling collected - at all!

A few weeks ago came a note through the door saying "We will be telling you when we will be collecting your recycling" but the information has failed to materialise.
Every week I have to walk to the nearest recycling centre - a few of those skips hidden in the back of a car park - with all the glass, metal, paper etc. accumulated during the previous week.

Attila # 7. June 2008, 14:32

We have 7 different bins where I live; one for "regular" garbage, and one for paper, one for cardboard, one for plastic, one for metal, one for glass and one for batteries.

The "regular" one is emptied twice a week, the others are emptied too seldom, they are usually over filled when they finally send a wagon!

Our garbage men doesn't take the garbage either if it's too heavy - as if it gets less heavy to be there for another week!

The Dark Furie # 7. June 2008, 14:47

When I complained about not having enough room for our recycling at the old place they told me I can take it to the plant myself. It's car access only so I don't see how that'll help the planet...

Attila # 7. June 2008, 14:50

That's stupidity! Before I had all these bins in my yard, there was only these big recycling stations to go to. But since it is getting too difficult to find time and transportation to get it there, it was just so much easier to just dump it all in the same bin in the yard.

Darko # 7. June 2008, 15:33

Our garbage bins are emptied 2-3 times a week and all of it is collected together - I have seen only few bins for plastic bottles in my area. Despite the fact that poverty is basically a sad thing, there are enough poor people, mostly gipsies, who collect paper and metal, sometimes glass, so a lot of it disappears from garbage bins before binmen come. And they are payed good enough so there are no complaints if garbage bins are overloaded.

theoddbod # 7. June 2008, 16:05

That 78-year-old (79, on re-reading) actually lives at the top of a hill. Previously the binmen would bring the truck up the drive to her house and take the bin. Now, she has to wheel it down the hill herself, and it's apparently half a mile

.

Fuckers.

Attila # 7. June 2008, 16:08

There is something seriously wrong in those mens heads Mart!

@ Darko ~ When I was in China, there were some elder people, mostly women, who collected plastic bottles as well. Some places they almost waited for you to finish your water.

Darko # 7. June 2008, 16:18

I have seen some men in Yokohama in Japan, collecting plastic bottles and alluminium cans, carrying them on their bicycles. But the town itself was so clean, I wondered where did they found it.

Attila # 7. June 2008, 16:22

in the bins?

"Stop the thief, stop the thief!"

Darko # 7. June 2008, 16:33

The Dark Furie # 7. June 2008, 18:58

It's business Tils. Back when I was a kid bin men used to come into your garden, collect the bins and any excess bags and take them to the truck. Since it got privatised the companies compete to give the cheapest quotes to do the job. They also try to keep their workers happy and on the job by giving them the best work conditions. Together it means that they're always cutting the services down. Where we moved from, if a trash collector spilt a bag on the street it wasn't even in his job description to pick it up, so they didn't.

Darko # 7. June 2008, 19:43

Here, they must pick everything they spill... or almost everything. In 4 a.m. there is no one to check....

Attila # 7. June 2008, 19:44

I completely understand the thing about giving workers good work conditions, but come on, a little flexibility on both sides woult be suitable. Making old people drag their own bins to the truck is ridiculous, and should cost them a serious whoop-ass!

Attila # 7. June 2008, 19:45

That's another issue, Darko. What the f*ck do they need to empty the bins at 4 oclock when everybody is asleep?! *Grrrrrrrr*

Darko # 7. June 2008, 19:53

Yes, making all the noise... Luckily, the bins are on the other side of the building so I can`t hear them

Attila # 7. June 2008, 20:01

My garbage men are very effective, Darko. They make sure to wake up people on both sides of the road.

The Dark Furie # 7. June 2008, 20:26

I spent months going down to our council telling them we needed another bin when we were at the shared house and finally got one from them. Then a couple of weeks later the trash collectors took it with them so they'd only have one to empty and the council wouldn't give me another.

theoddbod # 7. June 2008, 21:47

At least they've given up emptying the bins at 4am now, at least where I live. It's nearly 9am when they appear here. But the natural order is preserved - they still get here earlier than the postman.

Cois # 8. June 2008, 00:26

Be on good terms with your binmen..

I got in a spat with one once and they refused to pick up our rubbish.. (we had a tiff at a club) repeated visits to the municipality and still nothing..
I had to put my garbage with the neighbors just to get it removed.. It got sorted in the end when my mummy fought my battle for me and she called the mayor..

apparently they were chums in the old days..

theoddbod # 8. June 2008, 00:36

Well, at least we don't live in Naples