Dundee City Council is unable to say when all areas of the city will have the correct bins, after the roll-out of a new scheme caused chaos for residents.
Residents in many areas say their bins have been left overflowing after the frequency of collections was changed, various recycling bins were introduced, and large communal containers, named Eurobins, were adopted.
In the last few days, the controversial containers have been removed from spots such as in the Kirkton area of the city.
Residents in Strathmartine also blamed the roll-out for giant stacks of glass bottles appearing outside Tesco’s recycling centre at the Kingsway West Retail Park.
The council has blamed the problems on delayed deliveries of the new bins by manufacturers and, when asked, a spokesman said they were unable to give a definitive timeline for when all areas would have the correct bins in place.
A spokesman for the Taxpayers Alliance said residents were right to expect better.
He said: “There’s nothing wrong with trying to innovate but it must be properly planned out so as not to cause as many problems as this scheme seems to have done.
“At the end of the day council tax represents a large outlay for local residents each year and they want it to fund basic essential services and bin collection is about as basic and essential as it gets.”
A trial in 2015 in areas of Broughty Ferry and the West End was hailed a success by the council, despite concerns being raised then regarding overloaded containers.
Ferry councillor Craig Duncan defended the council and said that “teething problems” would eventually be ironed out.
He said: “I have been receiving some complaints about where some of the bins are relocated and the frequency of collection.
“Some of the problems do appear to be misunderstanding of the new system but some of them will be teething problems.
“Eventually they will go away and I do think the council are doing a reasonable job at dealing with the issues.
“They have been let down by the manufacturers to a certain extent.
“What we need to do now is listen to residents and take them with us in this effort to improve waste management and recycling.”
Andrew Llanwarne, of Friends of the Earth Tayside, said listening to the concerns of residents would be essential in ironing out the issues.
He said: “The mix of types of housing in Dundee means it is difficult to find a solution to effective recycling but that’s why the council has decided to introduce shared bins.
“Clearly it takes a while for changes to take place and so some initial disturbance is to be expected to an extent.
“Responding to residents and tenants’ concerns will be the most important part of ensuring the scheme works.
“We hope that it will be successful.”
