Two dead rabbits showed up on WasteServ’s recycling conveyer belts last week, days after the waste management company urged people to stop disposing of such waste in recycling bags.

The carcasses were dumped in a grey recycling bag, which ended up at WasteServ’s sorting plant last Thursday.

Just 10 days earlier, company CEO Richard Bilocca had told Times of Malta workers sometimes fished out animal heads, organs or whole carcasses from the grey bags.

He said the more gruesome waste tended to increase when there was negative press about waste management but observed that the trend was on the decline.

On the same day the rabbits were found last week, a flammable object caught fire inside a shredder at the Magħtab landfill.

The object was disposed of in the mixed waste (black) bag. It was likely a flare or a cannister containing fuel or other flammable material.

Extremely irresponsible for people to throw dangerous objects in collection bags

It created a small fire that was quickly extinguished but could have had more devastating consequences, a WasteServ spokesperson told Times of Malta.

He said it was extremely irresponsible for people to throw dangerous objects in collection bags. It is disrespectful to workers and could severely injure them, he said.

Flammable materials should be disposed of at civic amenity sites, which offer the service free of charge.

Last month, some 140 tonnes of recyclable waste had to be dumped after a Chinese flare and other wartime flare pistol cartridges were found in the grey bags.

Workers had to call in the army to detonate the flammable objects in a controlled explosion.

Despite a continuous educational campaign for both households and industry, WasteServ keeps weeding out dangerous and potentially explosive material.

However, the company has been registering bigger and better waste separation numbers and the country is set to reach record recycling figures this year.