Litter problem worsening

Despite showing signs of improvement in the aftermath of the pandemic, Nenagh's litter problem is worsening again, local representatives agreed this month.

Cllr John Carroll raised a particular problem with the dumping of bags or sacks of domestic waste in rural areas. Tipperary Co Council's litter wardens had to recently clean up one location in the Shallee vicinity where six bags were dumped in an open drain flowing into a local river course.

“That to me is the lowest form of low-life that could do that,” Cllr Carroll told a meeting of the council's Nenagh Municipal District. He praised the wardens for working in freezing cold temperatures to remove the rubbish from the water.

But Cllr Carroll said new ways have to be found to prevent littering and illegal dumping, a problem that is placing a huge financial burden on the local authority. He spoke of other countries using a bar code system on food packaging bought from fast food outlets, which could connect the purchaser of the food with the dumped packaging. He also wanted to see the rollout of spy cameras to catch people in the act of dumping rubbish and “name them and shame them”.

Cllr Fiona Bonfield agreed that the litter problem is worsening again. Huge increases in littering were noted during the lockdowns and she said the council would need to “up our game” to tackle the resurgence. Cllr Bonfield suggested a renewed focus on litter awareness in schools. She also mentioned the new Deposit Return scheme for bottles and cans, which is aimed at tackling litter, and the rollout of solar bins, which can use compactor technology to crush rubbish, meaning they can hold significantly more waste than ordinary litter bins.

HOUSEHOLD WASTE INSPECTIONS

Cllr Joe Hannigan mentioned another two illegal dumping incidents that were reported to him in the Borrisokane area. He also observed the high compliance rate in the council's household waste inspection scheme, wherein enforcement officers call to homes to seek evidence of licensed refuse collection.

The meeting was informed that 157 surveys were undertaken in the Nenagh district last year and 143 households were compliant, a rate of 91%. Cllr Hannigan wanted to know what was being done about the non-compliant households.

Senior Executive Officer Michael Moroney said the compliance rate in Nenagh is above the national average. The outstanding 9% of households were given the opportunity to obtain a licensed service or show evidence of where their waste was going; failure to comply would result in legal action.

Mr Moroney said the council is seeing instances of “casual littering” as well as more pervasive offending. He mentioned the many education and awareness schemes run by the council, and appealed for anyone with information about illegal dumping to contact the council so that it could take action.

He agreed that the incoming Deposit Return scheme would assist in terms of roadside littering. The addition of further solar bins around the county would be a budgetary issue for the council. Regarding the use of cameras to catch offenders, Mr Moroney said the council has the hardware; it is a matter of awaiting new legislation on CCTV to use it.

‘MONKEY SEE AND MONKEY WILL DO’

Cllr John Rocky McGrath also spoke of his dealings with wardens on the issue and described the littering he saw as “disgusting”. He said education about the problem has to start in the home.

“Teach your children,” Cllr McGrath implored. “Monkey see and monkey will do.”

The meeting was also informed that the council's Environment section issued 41 fixed penalty notices in the Nenagh district last year, 26 of which were litter fines.

Nenagh Civic Amenity recycling centre had a total of 28,054 visitors in 2023. A mattress amnesty took place at the centre in July, when 264 mattresses were accepted free of charge. Among several other initiatives run by the Environment section during the year were household hazardous waste collection days, roadside anti-litter projects, and a clean-up project at Knockanroe walking loop.