Dirty Dublin blots overall clean report in litter survey

• Much of the Capital ‘as littered as it has been in many years’ says IBAL
• Deprived areas of Dublin and Cork are litter blackspots
• Derelict and vacant properties contributing to litter problem

While most of the country has received a clean bill of health in the latest survey by Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL), Dublin has been slammed for its worst result in years. Large parts of the Capital, including the approach roads from Dublin Airport as well as the North inner city, were found to be heavily littered. IBAL has warned that the rise in vacant and derelict properties is contributing to increased litter and unsightliness in certain areas.

The league table of 53 areas across the country showed two–thirds of towns and cities to be clean to European norms, among them the cities of Waterford, Galway and, for the first time, Cork. Also for the first time since the League began, Killarney took the accolade of cleanest town, with the An Taisce examiners calling it “a superb result for our No.1 tourist town”. The cleanliness rating for the country as whole (82) was the highest since IBAL began its surveys ten years ago, with over 20 towns deemed to be cleaner than European equivalents.

“Towns like Killarney, Kilkenny and Wexford are putting in great effort to show their best side to tourists to our country,” says Dr Tom Cavanagh, Chairman of IBAL. “Unfortunately, foreign visitors to these towns typically arrive first in Dublin, and there they are being exposed to widespread litter, starting at the roads from the airport itself. This is a national issue, not a local one: Ireland cannot be deemed a clean destination for tourists, if Dublin itself is not clean, and that doesn’t just mean the city centre.”

An Taisce, who conducted the survey, commented on an unprecedented number of seriously littered sites in the capital: “The majority of the sites in Dublin were not just littered but suffering from long-term abuse and neglect. Food-related litter was common on most of the approach roads to the city.”

“IBAL has intensified its focus on Dublin this year, and we need to see the same concentration of effort by Dublin’s local authorities,” says Dr Tom Cavanagh. “Year after year our surveys are showing that the country as a whole has cleaned up its act. The city centre parts of our capital have too, but in its entirety the city and its approaches have not progressed. Local authorities need to look beyond just Grafton Street, to Dublin as a whole.”    

IBAL selected two disadvantaged city areas for particular attention this year: Knocknaheeny in Cork and North Inner City Dublin, and after the first survey both are occupying the bottom two places in the litter rankings. According to the business group, city councils often commit significant resources to high profile city centre locations which attract tourism and high footfall, to the detriment of such areas where many citizens live. “Fact is, we see regular cleaning on Dublin’s Grafton Street and Patrick Street in Cork, but less so in the more neglected parts of the cities. A clean environment is critical to disadvantaged areas, as it can help stimulate a civic pride and self-respect which in turn impacts positively on all aspects of social life in these communities. These initial results for Knocknaheeny and Dublin’s North Inner City were not a surprise, but we know the local authorities are working to improve them and hopefully results will be better next time.”

IBAL warns that the economic downturn has led to specific litter problems, with the rise in vacant commercial properties, alongside ghost estates and derelict sites, an increasing issue. “No one feels responsible for such areas, which are often eyesores and magnets for litter,” says Dr Cavanagh. “On the one hand, local authorities need to pursue absentee landlords who fail to maintain these sites. On the other, the problem calls for volunteerism by local communities in covering up derelict surfaces with murals and so on.”  

Sweet wrappers were the most prevalent source of litter, followed by cigarette butts, fast food wrappings, plastic bottles and chewing gum. Supermarkets and fast food outlets were the sites most likely to be heavily littered, among them Tesco in New Ross and Mallow, and McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut in Sligo. Several public buildings were also heavily littered, such as Galway’s Merlin Park Hospital, with Waterford bus station exterior classed as a litter blackspot.

ENDS

For further information contact Conor Horgan at Cullen Communications.

Tel 01 668 9099/ 086 821 721  or chorgan@cullencommunications.ie

Editors note:

Set up in 1996, Irish Business Against Litter is an alliance of companies sharing a belief that continued economic prosperity - notably in the areas of tourism, food and direct foreign investment - is contingent on a clean, litter-free environment.

As part of the IBAL Anti-Litter League, An Taisce monitors all towns of population 6,000 and over independently in accordance with international grading standards. The programme is run in conjunction with the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government.

Visit www.ibal.ie for further information.