KAGOSHIMA - A company in Kagoshima has developed a new garbage collection station that uses specially shaped wires and rollers instead of conventional nets to prevent crows from scattering household waste, offering a cleaner and more convenient solution to a persistent problem in Japan's urban neighborhoods.
Crows have long been a nuisance at garbage collection points across Japan, tearing open bags and spreading food waste across streets and sidewalks. Even when protective nets are placed over garbage, the birds can sometimes slip through gaps to reach the contents.
Residents also complain that conventional nets are unpleasant to handle, particularly when they become dirty or wet, as people must lift them each time they dispose of their garbage.
The new system was developed by Flywalk, a company based in Kagoshima City, after its representative, Tomohiro Nishi, heard a complaint from his wife about the inconvenience of handling garbage nets.
She had remarked that she disliked getting her hands dirty when lifting the net to dispose of garbage on rainy days. The comment prompted Nishi to consider whether a collection point could be designed without requiring residents to touch a net.
The resulting system uses specially shaped wires positioned around the garbage collection area. The arrangement allows residents to deposit garbage bags smoothly while preventing crows from entering.
Rollers installed along the outer frame provide an additional defense. When crows attempt to land on the structure to reach the garbage, the rotating rollers make it difficult for them to maintain their footing.
Nishi said even the spacing and dimensions of the structure had been carefully calculated. "We calculated the width here as well. Initially, it was a little narrower," he explained.
Developing the system required approximately seven months of trial and error, including five prototypes and a series of experiments to determine the most effective arrangement.
The final design was completed in April 2026 and has since been installed in residential neighborhoods, where residents say it is already producing noticeable results.
At one location, residents recalled that crows previously gathered on a nearby utility pole, watching for opportunities to raid the garbage collection area.
"There were always crows here, on that utility pole," one resident said.
However, since the new collection station was installed, the birds have apparently stopped approaching the garbage, even as residents arrive throughout the day to deposit their waste.
Residents say the change has made the surrounding streets noticeably cleaner.
"There used to be crows around, and when we came to put out the garbage, we would sometimes find it scattered everywhere. That doesn't happen anymore," one resident said.
Another welcomed the improvement in neighborhood cleanliness. "It feels good. This whole area has become cleaner," the resident said, adding that replacing the old collection point with the new system had been a positive change.
Unlike conventional protective nets, the wire-and-roller arrangement also eliminates the need for residents to touch potentially dirty materials when disposing of household garbage, reducing the inconvenience associated with daily waste collection.
Japan has struggled for decades with crows that have learned to exploit garbage collection systems, particularly in densely populated urban areas where household waste provides a readily available food source.
The birds' intelligence and ability to adapt have made conventional countermeasures difficult to maintain, creating a long-running contest between residents trying to protect their garbage and crows searching for food.
With early installations showing promising results, the Kagoshima company's net-free design could offer a practical new approach to keeping neighborhood garbage collection points clean while making everyday disposal easier for residents.
Source: FNN
