Is there any way waste can be collected in Dublin without the use of unsightly black bin bags? 

While most of the country long ago began using wheelie bins to dispose of their rubbish, some parts of Dublin continue to leave their rubbish out on the street in bin bags for collection - many of which are attacked and pillaged by ravenous seagulls. 

The reason for this is many of the older houses in the city centre have nowhere suitable to store rubbish. 

On The Pat Kenny Show, Dublin Town CEO Richard Guiney said there is an urgent need for people to “put our collective minds together” as the status quo is “just not working for anyone”. 

“Our view back in 2012 when the service was privatised was that there would be issues and we are definitely experiencing the kind of issues that we thought we would experience,” he said. 

“Obviously, bin storage for someone on the third floor of a small office is a problem. 

“I think that just the mere fact that we’re five or six months on from the time when there was to be no bin bags in certain areas shows that there are practical issues in terms of resolving these issues.” 

Bn bags in Dublin. Picture by: Leon Farrell/© RollingNews.ie

Mr Guiney continued that the privatisation of the municipal waste collection should be ‘looked at’. 

“When the waste was collected by the council, they had their people going around emptying the ordinary public bins - if someone left out a bin, they would just take it away,” he said.  

“So, there was that more regular collection - and that made a big difference.

“When it was privatised, there’s one collection that can take place at 12 o’clock at night - so, that is an issue.” 

He added that the hours many companies collect waste are antisocial and disruptive. 

“In terms of the timings of when the bins are going to be collected, that for us has been an issue for quite some time,” he said. 

“Particuarly for the night time economy, when the retailers have left their bins out and a place doesn’t look great, to be honest. 

“So, I think we need a resolution on this and I think we really need to start thinking outside the box.”

Main image: Bin bags await collection in Dublin. Picture by: Peter Titmuss / Alamy Stock Photo