Ask Liverpool: Are new super-smart solar bins the answer to the city's litter issue?

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Liverpool City Council is trialling a new generation of solar-powered bins to tackle litter. We've been on the streets to ask if you think we have a problem with rubbish.

The solar-powered bins have sensor technology fitted, and when close to being full, a compactor is triggered to crush down the litter, allowing the bin to take up to 100% more litter than standard litter bins before it needs emptying.

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The super-smart solar bins also send a signal to the waste depot when it is almost full, which improves the Council's collection efficiency. The first 20 bins are at a number of high-footfall areas across the city, including in the parks outside Anfield stadium and in the city centre.

But are super-smart solar bins the answer to the city's litter issue?Watch the video to see what Liverpudlians told us.

We asked for opinions on Liverpool's new solar-powered litter bins.We asked for opinions on Liverpool's new solar-powered litter bins.
We asked for opinions on Liverpool's new solar-powered litter bins. | Emily Bonner and Liverpool City Council

In addition to developing an anti-litter programme with Keep Britain Tidy and community groups, the Council has also invested in CCTV to identify and prosecute fly-tippers. The local authority currently deals with more than 1,300 fly-tipping incidents a month, of which more than 85% are cleared within five working days.

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I often think about Bill Bryson's book about Britain, Notes From A Small Island, first published in 1995 in which, once he got to Liverpool, he exclaimed, "They were having a festival of litter when I arrived." Despite this being published almost twenty years ago, Liverpool still has a way to go to clean up our streets.

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