Charity going to waste

CHARITY clothing bins intended to help the needy are being misused as dumping grounds by unscrupulous residents, with food waste and old mattresses being found in and around the containers by charity workers.

The problem has become so bad that some charities have stopped using the bins altogether.

Wollongong City Council has been aware of the problem for years, and in 2005 endorsed a policy stating that charities must submit an application to Council when seeking to locate the bins on public land.

The policy required the bin's owners to empty their contents regularly and keep the area surrounding the bin in good order, but the strategy seems to have been an ineffective deterrent.

Salvation Army Stores Illawarra Area Manager Philip Cooke said the Salvos did away with their clothing bins about seven years ago partly as a response to the ongoing problem of rubbish dumping and the continued misuse of the containers.

"The rubbish dumped is an horrendous problem," Mr Cooke said. "It can range from anything from bags of prawns to chicken carcasses."

"We have had numerous incidents of guys picking up broken glass (and) you cop the abuse of the neighbours when you go to pick up items because all this stuff is dropped there.

"But it is not the charity's fault."

Today donations to local Salvation Army Stores go directly to the store, or are picked up from people's homes.

Senior Minister at St Mark's Anglican Church in Wollongong said that, while the clothing bin on St Mark's grounds was free from wanton dumping; the site had fallen victim to a different form of abuse.

"We haven't had problems with people dumping rubbish so much as they just fish all the clothes out and go through them," he said.

"They come at night and scatter them around.

"Whoever it is they're actually stealing from the bins - which they shouldn't do."

Council is currently working with local charities to find better ways of managing charity clothing bins in the area.