Good thing it's now been featured in the New York Times. /s
1. To discourage dumping of the whole bin's contents on to the sidewalk - happens often enough that it's an issue in some neighborhoods.
2. To punish picking out private info from trash. Things like credit card statements, utility bills, etc. that may contain sensitive information.
I really could not care less what people do with my trash as long as they refrain from the above two points.
“The city is most concerned about the battered pickup trucks, known as mosquito fleets, that buzz around San Francisco collecting recyclables on an industrial scale, depriving Recology, and ultimately the city, of income, said Bill Barnes, a spokesman for the city administrator’s office.
“That’s a significant challenge for residents because it results in higher garbage rates,” Mr. Barnes said.”
Once I throw it away, I don't mind if others make money off of it. I'd rather have someone make use of it, and someone appreciate it rather than it going completely to waste.
I actually thought of getting into it, but I never bothered to actually get out and do it since the reward seemed so small compared to other things I could spend my time on. However, there's definitely a community of dumpster divers out there that do it on the regular.
I guess I'm only somewhat surprised that this is illegal in California, and I'm not at all surprised that it's illegal in the Bay Area (there are a lot more wealthy people that don't want undesirables picking through their trash).