An investigation has been demanded at Orkney Island Council after the authority potentially spent £188,000 on un-needed wheelie bins.
A delivery of bins to the council was almost twice as large as required, leaving Orkney's main island with 9,500 spare wheelie bins.
A local councillor has demanded an investigation into the apparent error, arguing the funds could have been better spent on regional services.
A spokesman told the BBC: 'In hindsight some of the planning assumptions that had underpinned the project had resulted in some unforeseen outcomes'.
Communities secretary Eric Pickles has long-championed regular wheelie bin collections, once saying 'it's a fundamental right for every Englishman and woman to be able to put the remnants of their chicken tikka masala in their bin without having to wait two weeks for it to be collected'.
