'Creepy': Residents troubled after learning bizarre reason their rubbish was secretly taken
Residents in a NSW suburb have been left feeling creeped out after discovering their rubbish had been taken in the middle of the night - before the garbage trucks had even arrived.
Earlier this month Queanbeyan-Palerang locals spotted what they described as an unmarked white van cruising down the streets and emptying random bins under the cover of darkness.
Bungendore residents who spotted the mystery van taking their rubbish were left confused, with some labelling it "creepy".
"I assume it's something for the council but you do think who's going through my rubbish? There hasn't even been a note in the mail," one woman told Fairfax Media.
But Councillor for the Queanbeyan-Palerang area, Peter Marshall, has set the record straight on why a van was secretly sweeping streets in the area and emptying rubbish bins.
He told the Canberra Times the collection is part of a council audit of waste in the area and said there was a reason to keep the exercise confidential.
"It's kept secret in advance so that people don't change their practices knowing that their bin might be in the sample," he said.
However, not everyone was thrilled with the explanation, labelling the practice as “intrusive”.
"I understand the council's intentions are honourable but covertly collecting our rubbish and sifting through it without our permission or any notification feels like a breach of privacy," one resident said.
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