Members of the public are now being invited by a senior councillor to propose their own solutions.

New figures show 216 bins were stolen from domestic and commercial premises during 2006, including 117 between October and December.

Dundee City Council also reported that 442 bins were damaged, with almost half of the incidents in the last quarter of the year.

The total cost of replacing the bins was £9870 — a bill met by the city council, private landlords, housing associations and construction companies.

Council convener of environmental services and sustainability Julie Sturrock said, “The whole move in waste management has been for people to put their bins out and take them back in again.

“The message we need to get across is that, if bins are damaged or not left where they are, it comes out of everybody’s pocket in the end.”

The councillor said the authority worked in co-operation with other agencies, including the police and fire brigade, but there were no simple solutions.

Police Superintendent Arron Duncan said, “Whatever the circumstances, theft and vandalism are wholly unacceptable, but what gives me greatest cause for concern is that the people involved in setting light to wheelie bins seem entirely oblivious to the extreme dangers involved.

“The flames and heat given off a bin that is ablaze can be ferocious, presenting a serious risk to those in the immediate vicinity and potentially those living nearby.

“As with all vandalism, it comes at a cost to local tax payers or an individual, but most significantly it puts lives at risk.

“I ask householders to put their bins out on ‘bin day’ and retrieve them that same day. If there is a storage area for the bins, then please use it to help reduce the chances of them being wheeled away and abandoned or vandalised.”

A spokesman for Tayside Fire and Rescue said, “Often we attend bin fires which have smoke-logged staircases and caused not only alarm, but actual danger to the occupants who become trapped in their homes.

“They often cause damage to buildings through the effects of fire in the immediate area, but also smoke damage throughout buildings.

“Bins often contain pressurised canisters which can create an explosion hazard.

“When attending a bin fire, the appliances concerned are not available for further emergency calls which may result in a person having to wait longer that would otherwise be the case for rescue.”

Councillor Sturrock noted the burning of wheelie bins was a particular concern, not just because of the safety risk but also the fact that uncontrolled burning of plastics is harmful to the environment.

She said, “If there was a straightforward solution to this it would have been done already and there would no longer be a problem. If anybody has any ideas then they will all be very gratefully received.”