Big brother bins
Bin brother is coming to Broome.
Electronic spy bugs the size of a 10 cent piece will be hidden under the moulded front lip of yellow and green wheelie bins used for normal household and recyclable waste.
Thousands of them will be fitted by the end of March.
The official reason for installing the radio frequency identification tags from the Shire of Broome was to improve efficiency and settle disputes over wheelie-bin ownership.
But it has emerged the technology would also give waste contractor ToxFree the capacity to weigh rubbish as it is emptied.
The council has not ruled out the possibility of eventually imposing fines on households exceeding limits on the amount of non-recyclable waste being put out.
Shire of Broome director of engineering services Michael Dale said that component of the system would be used for data gathering only and there would be no charges or penalties "at this stage".
"You can have two, three or four bins picked up each week on a fee-for-service basis - but it is a fee for service," he said.
"If you want the extra bin collection services, you have to pay for it. There are some properties out there now that have the additional bins but are not paying for that service.
"The introduction of the RFID tags will make sure that those people either stop using those bins they are not paying for or they come forward and start paying for them."
As the bin is raised by a mechanical hoist at the side of the truck, the chip passes across an antenna fitted to the lifting mechanism.
That enables the antenna to read the unique number coded to each property in the street.
A computer inside the truck can subtract the weight of the bin and records the weight of the contents on an electronic data card.
When the truck returns to the depot, all the information collected on the round is downloaded to the council's central computer.
Mr Dale said checks would initially be carried out if "unique" serial numbers did not match properties. He warned bins would ultimately not be emptied if they were found without a chip after a "grace period".
The Broome waste management facility on Buckleys Road will close in about three years time when it reaches capacity.
The council is keen to divert the amount of rubbish heading to landfill and will soon start replacing the current 240-litre recycling bins with 360-litre versions over coming years.
"The bigger bins will be collected by the same recycling truck and will allow households to separate more recyclables from their waste," Mr Dale said.
"Ultimately, this will lead to more waste being diverted from landfill."
The RFID tags would identify each bin and allow the collection truck to record each time a bin is collected and record the location of the bin using GPS.
Mr Dale said the technology should also stamp out a black market in wheelie bins in which some were stolen and used at other properties, while others were sold cheaply on the internet.
He said because Broome runs waste recycling facilities, it has twice as many bins as most rural councils.
"What this allows us to do is quickly and easily track the bins and potentially they can be audited weekly or even daily," Mr Dale said.
"That way you can look after them as an asset. You can plan renewal around them. You can monitor the service delivery, whether it is being done efficiently and effectively for the entire community.
"With the chip, the Shire only pays for the bins that are collected, so there would be a flow-on effect with contract efficiencies as well."
The majority of green and yellow bins should have the devices installed by the end of March.
