26,000 music fans hit Perth’s Rock-It festival on the weekend, and unsurprisingly reports indicate that the highly publicised drug disposal bins trialled by WA authorities at the entrance to the event were largely ignored. The bins were tested at Rock-It following the public outcry following the drug related death of 17-year-old Gemma Thoms at the Big Day Out early in February.

Three bins were situated nearby the entry for the festival, and they offered punters the chance to dispose of drugs without fear of police prosecution. However it seems that their positioning, in clear view of everyone entering the event, proved a sticking point with many punters. “Nobody’s going to use them with cops everywhere and in full view like that,” 19-year-old Siobhan Medhurst told The Australian.

Police said they were “generally satisfied” with the response to the drug disposal bins, and also indicated they will use them again in the future. “It was pleasing to see that the message that drugs were not welcome at the event and that they are dangerous seems to have been accepted in that nobody was treated for drug overdoses at the festival,” Perth metropolitan regions Commander Brian Cunningham told The West Australian.

Other than drugs, flour and icing sugar were also dumped inside the disposal bins. 164 searches were carried out at the event, which led to 10 drug related arrests. No arrests were made inside the festival for drug possession.