Charity clothes dumpers at Balmain branded 'lazy' by angry locals after horrific sight of discarded bags near bins

People who leave donations in charity bins have been branded 'lazy' after several bags of clothing were dumped and strewn outside a drop-off point.

This week, at least a dozen bags were left around Youth Safe bins in a Woolworths car park near Balmain in Sydney's inner west.

Now that the bins were full, the dumpers decided to leave bags of donations on the site, but heavy rain quickly destroyed the items inside.

At least one of the plastic bags had split open, while a pile of clothing was in the parking lot and other items were scattered around the area.

One local resident posted a photo of the ugly donations on Facebook to vent her anger and ask her community to do a better job putting donations in the bins.

“If you see them full, don't leave your stuff on the floor,” she wrote.

'Despite the sunny conditions last week, rain has fallen, meaning that what was usable is now likely to be unviable.

'Additionally, many operators have volunteers to sort through this and the operator will then have to pay the removal costs, which otherwise depletes valuable resources.'

She also posted possible reasons why the bins were full and asked people to take this into account.

'These bins are emptied regularly, but sometimes operators are short-staffed or have had issues with vehicles (which has happened in the past), so I hope you can wait until the next cycle when it is full.'

Social media users were also annoyed by the dumping. Others noted that if people wanted to donate but the bins were full, there were other options in the area.

“Three charity shops in nearby Rozelle: Noffs, Red Cross and Vinnies,” someone commented.

But while most people saw the move as 'lazy', the government sees it differently.

The NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) said it is an illegal offense and punishable by fines of up to $4000 (file photo)

A spokesperson for the NSW Environment Protection Authority told Ny Breaking Australia fines have been imposed.

“Fines of up to $4,000 could be imposed for illegal dumping outside charity shops and bins,” they said.

“Leaving unwanted items outside bins and shops impacts the community by creating an eyesore and potentially a public safety hazard.

'It also costs charity recyclers in cleaning, transport and disposal costs.'

They said donating goods to charities provides the opportunity to dispose of unwanted items of good quality, thus reducing landfill waste.

'However, not everything that is donated can be used. Around 70% of charity donations are recycled, but the remaining 30% is thrown away by charities, at significant cost to them.”

They encourage people to think about the quality of their donations and to learn a charity's guidelines, such as not leaving items outside when the bin is full or the charity shop is closed.

It is also advisable to enter into a 'dialogue' with charities, says Riley Aickin of textile repair and recycling organization Upparel.

“It's about consciously donating instead of 'I don't want this anymore, so now it's someone else's problem,'” he said. Yahoo in September.

'Go to your local Salvo's when they're open and ask 'what do you need?'.'