
Garbage piles up in Greens-led city due to appalling public security – video
Towering piles of rubbish cover the streets of Bordeaux, as there are some streets where rubbish collectors no longer dare to enter after having been targets of armed threats. The Greens city leadership promises a solution by September while a local association is trying to tackle the situation.
The situation is intolerable in the Greens-led city of Bordeaux, where household waste has not been collected in some neighbourhoods for many months due to rapidly deteriorating public security.
The city in western France ranks among the most dangerous ones, as the number of physical attacks has risen by 20 per cent since 2020, as revealed in an article published by CNews. The number of violent incidents in the city increased by one percent in 2020 and by 12 percent in 2021, said Nicolas Pereira, city councillor, citing figures released by the interior ministry.
One such violent incident is the reason for the garbage piling up in the city. In January 2021, a car parked in the wrong place led to a dispute that ended with the car owner pointing a gun at the waste collectors because the driver of the bin lorry sounded the horn to signal that the car was blocking their way. Following the threat, the bin collectors decided to hold a stoppage and announced that they would refuse to enter certain streets until public security issues were resolved. Another problem for bin collectors is some dead end streets where the lorries have no space to turn around and reversing is prohibited by a 2012 regulation, as multiple fatal accidents have been caused in the past. The measure affects some 650 streets, where it is close to impossible for garbage trucks to get out.
Residents can put their rubbish into bins at the end of some dead-end streets, but those fill up almost immediately and the garbage piles up around them, Deputy Mayor Vince Maurin said. The politician added that it is not a novel phenomenon in the city. There were 21 illegal dump sites in the Bacalan district when he was elected in 2020, he said.
The members of the Bordeaux Services Solidarite association are trying to improve the situation. They collect garbage every Monday at the expense of City Hall. They estimate the amount that they collect at about 600 to 700 kg every week. Deputy Mayor Maurin added that this was only a temporary solution. Regular waste disposal, however, can be restored by September at the earliest, with people having to put up with the stench in their neighbourhoods until then.
Menacés, les éboueurs d’un quartier de Bordeaux ne passent plus depuis des mois
👉 Entre odeurs nauséabondes et rats, les habitants sont á bout pic.twitter.com/Dkgq9ubjlk
— BFMTV (@BFMTV) July 25, 2022
Pests have also proliferated in the district. A resident said his two dogs brought home 5-6 rats every day from the overflowing garbage cans. Reducing the amount of household waste spilling on to the road would be the solution to the increased number of rats problem, the deputy mayor said.
Drug trade in the Bacalan district continues to pose a problem in terms of public security, actu.fr writes. Drug deals are mostly struck at night, but many addicts are still on the streets at 6 am when the garbage truck arrives. Garbage collectors should start working there at a later time, around 8 or 9 o’clock, the deputy mayor suggested.