The government's new "smart bins" have been trashed by the ACT Conservation Council, which says the government needs to be looking at how to reduce waste, not better ways to manage it.
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The ACT government on Thursday announced it was trialling new "smart bins" in three locations across Canberra in the hopes of reducing unnecessary bin collections.
The bins, which are solar-powered and self-compacting, can hold up to 600 litres of waste, which is four times that of regular bins.
They're also fitted with a sensor that records real-time data on rubbish volume, which Territory and Municipal Services will monitor remotely to schedule bin collections.
"TAMS is currently emptying rubbish bins at Kingston three times a week. We now expect to be able to reduce this to once or twice a week depending on usage and events in the area such as the Old Bus Depot markets. This all adds up," minister for transport and municipal services Meegan Fitzharris said.
"By increasing the capacity, the bins reduce overflow issues, reduce the number of collection trips required and can cut related fuel use and carbon emissions by more than half."
But the ACT Conservation Council's executive director Larry O'Loughlin said the smart bins were a bad idea if they only dealt with waste to landfill.
"A genuinely smart bin would allow for recycling and reuse of materials and not just collect material for our unsustainable waste mountain at Mugga Lane," he said.
"Doing the right thing is reducing waste and recycling: that is the best way to manage our waste problem and not by encouraging people to put everything into a compactor - solar-powered or not.
"A key part of waste management for the ACT is to engage with the community in reducing waste not encouraging people to put more waste into bins."
The 12-month trial is a partnership between various ACT Government agencies including TAMS and the Land Development Agency.
The bins area can be found at Link Park in Wright, Eastlake Parade at the Kingston Foreshore and "Campbell 5" in Campbell.
"The ACT Waste Feasibility Study is investigating a range of options around how best to manage and minimise waste in the ACT and surrounding regions now and into the future.
"This trial will help to develop a plan of action around bin quantities, size, location and collection frequency," Ms Fitzharris said.
