Roadside charity bins in Mernda have been removed by Whittlesea City Council due to incidents of illegal dumping and vandalism by residents.

The charities and business organisations were served with notices to comply by the Council after it received complaints that residents were dumping boxes, mattresses and bulky goods outside the old Mernda sale yards Whittlesea City Council North Ward councillor Ricky Kirkham said.

A review and report of all charity bins and locations in the municipality is also being prepared by Council.

“We aren’t anti-support of charities, it is more about supporting places where dumping is minimised,” Cr Kirkham said.

It has been a constant issue that has been occurring for months due to the bins being located in an isolated area, he said.

“There is an element of opportunism as there is not too much passive surveillance in the area so there is the issue of out-of-sight, out-of-mind,” Cr Kirkham said.

The aim of the report is to uphold the reputation of the area as clean and environmentally friendly and to support the bins that are in the best location for residents, Cr Kirkham said.

Southern Cross Recycling spokesman Karl Barabas said it was “disappointing” that Council had asked them to remove their bin from the site.

“Generally speaking, the sites are managed quite well,” he said.

“However, there were issues with items being placed beside the bin and not in the bin itself.”

Mr Barabas said he hopes that the report from Council would focus on educating residents on proper use of the bins as “the community didn’t respect it”.

City of Greater Dandenong senior media and communications coordinator Anya Murray said illegal dumping at charity bins was a widespread problem across all local councils.

“Our council has a Litter Prevention Officer and a Litter Action Taskforce which is made up 10 to 12 representatives from across the Council and was set up as a result of extra funding,” she said.

The Council also ran a “Neat Streets” campaign with Leader Newspapers over a period of eight months, which was effective.

“We also have CCTV cameras set up at charity bin sites, some are operational and some are not, to act as a deterrent,” Ms Murray said.

The report is expected to completed within the next two or three months.