Pig-proof bins rolled out to deter street raids

Pig-proof bins rolled out to deter street raids

Chan Po Lam from the Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department says wild animals should find it difficult to get into the new bins. Photo: RTHK

Officials have unveiled new rubbish bins for the streets of Hong Kong which have been designed to stop wild animals pulling out the waste thrown in them.



The sight of wild pigs and monkeys hunting for food in urban areas has become more and more common in recent years, prompting officials to look for ways to prevent the animals from scattering rubbish all over the streets.



Polytechnic University was commissioned to design new animal-proof bins and came up with three different models.



Thirty of each design have now been installed in some 40 locations – at a cost of HK$1 million – for a pilot study.



The designs include a fenced enclosure fixed to the ground to prevent wild pigs from pushing the bin over, while a smaller opening than normal should stop the animals from climbing inside.



Chan Po Lam from the Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department said on Thursday that as well as causing hygiene issues, wild animals can harm themselves if they eat things like plastic that they scavenge from bins.



She said they are now monitoring just how wildlife-proof the new bins really are.



"In recent years we found that more and more wild pigs and monkeys go to urban areas and disturb the garbage. That's why the main scope of our study was to focus on refuse collection facilities in these areas," she said.



"Based on the data we collected from July to September, we are going to refine the design [of the bins] a little bit and in the coming three months we will test the durability of the bins. So hopefully, early next year we can start to manufacture the bins with some modifications and test them again in other areas."