A bin lorry blaze has sparked a warning from the city council's trading company urging residents to think more before they throw away waste.
A fire took place in a Refuse Collection Vehicle collecting domestic mixed recycling in Blackbird Leys on July 5.
Due to the fast actions of staff from Oxford Direct Services (ODS), the city council-owned service provider, and Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, the situation was brought under control quickly.
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However, the city council has since urged householders to be more careful when choosing what to chuck away.
Rupert Biddiscombe, ODS Waste and Recycling Manager, said: "Please help us, to help you!
"ODS is appealing to Oxford’s residents to think before they throw away any dangerous items that could, when incorrectly disposed of, pose a fire risk to themselves, our hardworking crews and vehicles, and other people and their properties.
“A moment of recklessness can not only have disastrous impact at the location of the fire, but waste collections right across Oxford can also be significantly impacted by the knock-on effect of damaged vehicles being taken out of service.”
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Research conducted by Material Focus amongst local authorities across the UK identified that over 700 fires in waste trucks and sites are caused by batteries that haven’t been removed from electricals.
The city council has advised that no batteries, or items containing batteries, should be placed in either rubbish or mixed recycling bins.
The online Oxford City Council Waste Wizard enables householders to check where and how to dispose of hazardous household waste through a simple postcode search.
Councillor and cabinet member for citizen focused services and council companies Nigel Chapman said: “One small act, like putting phone or vape batteries in general waste or recycling, can cause immense disruption, considerable damage to our collection vehicles, and create danger to the public and our operators.
"Please make sure you dispose of these batteries appropriately so that they can be properly treated and not cause a hazard.”
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ODS offers a weekly household collection service for batteries, cables, and small electricals and electronics such as toothbrushes, toasters, hairdryers and headphones that have a plug, battery or cable and will fit in a standard carrier bag.
The Environmental Services Association recently commissioned a national YouGov poll, which found that most consumers lack confidence about how to safely dispose of many of the common culprits that cause waste fires, including batteries, flammable liquids, compressed gas canisters, vape devices and barbecue or fire pit ashes.
The council has said this lack of knowledge likely contributes to the items being discarded improperly.
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