PILES of rubbish were left festering next to bins at Chelsea Beach last weekend.
A hot weekend saw people flock to the beach to enjoy the summer sun. However, on Monday morning residents reported that rubbish left at bins near the beach had not been picked up and had begun to blow away.
One Chelsea resident told The News that “I was on the beach around 10am [Monday] morning and the bins hadn’t been emptied. Seagulls were having a feast, making a mess, and the wind had picked up too blowing much of the rubbish towards the bay for our sealife to contend with.”
“While in the water yesterday my kids found cardboard, plastics and other such things partially tucked under the sand, we spent some time pulling it out in of the water and disposing of it,” the resident said. “Today I picked up avocado pips, bottle tops, straws, tissues, and watermelon pieces amongst other things – all dropped on the sand or blown from the bins.
“I’d love to see more bins along our beautiful foreshore, some signs to remind visitors to take rubbish home with them, and the contractors council have employed to be out early after a hot day to empty the bins before rubbish ends up everywhere.”
The News has received multiple complaints about rubbish on Chelsea Beach this summer.
Kingston Council says that people leaving larger rubbish items was affecting its collections. Council CEO Peter Bean said “unfortunately, we are frequently finding people are leaving behind large items like shade tents, large umbrellas, and chairs, which belong in hard waste and result in collection, capacity, and OH&S issues, causing delays. In Chelsea, we had over 10 staff in addition to contractors working along the foreshore Monday morning to ensure all litter and any waste piled next to bins was collected.
“Our service contract operates on a winter and summer schedule. Summer is Monday, Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday collections with the bins to be emptied by noon. We have the ability within the contract to request additional collections and these are done on an as needs basis and informed by weather forecasts. We scheduled extra collections on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday this past weekend due to the warm weather for example.”
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 7 February 2024
