A rise in littering is evident in county
SLIGO County Council should work with local communities and groups as much as possible to help keep areas tidy from litter, last week’s meeting heard.
Councillors raised concerns around the issue of rubbish in rural communities and along roadsides, which they say has been on the increase in recent years and particularly over the past 12 months during the course of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a motion tabled by Cllr Martin Baker calling on the council’s waste enforcement section to work with local community groups such as Tidy Towns and GAA clubs to ‘address the extra litter along our roadsides’.
Cllr Baker said he was aware in his own local area that the local GAA club, Shamrock Gaels, had engaged in clean ups in certain villages, and also praised the work of those working in the area of litter at council level for their efforts.
Cllr Gerard Mullaney said he too was aware of incidents of dumping, while Cllr Michael Clarke told members that the issue was ‘getting a lot worse’ in the pandemic.
He said he had received ‘a lot of calls’ in relation to big household items being dumped along the Lough Easkey road near Dromore West.
He complimented the work being done by those to prevent littering and said their efforts was appreciated by all councillors.
People should report anyone they see dumping, Cllr Paul Taylor said, while he also praised the efforts of local groups engaged in litter prevention and collection.
Cllr Dara Mulvey spoke of littering at Ladies Brae, and encouraged people to highlight and publicise issues with rubbish in the county.
Acting Director of Services Emer Concannon acknowledged there has been a rise in littering and fly tipping along roadsides in the county.
Ms Concannon also highlighted that
National Spring Clean is scheduled to take place from March, and registration for community groups is now open with An Taisce.
She also told members that through engagement with the Environment section, arrangements can be made for the collection of community clean-up material following arranged clean-up days.
Litter pickers are also available from the Environment Section for a fee of €3, if community groups wish to avail of them, she said.