Litter levels throughout the country have improved once again, with over 68% of Irish towns and cities now classed as “litter free” including Letterkenny, according to the latest litter survey by Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL). New entrant Buncrana, however, was deemed ‘Moderately Littered’, in 45th place of the 60 areas surveyed. IBAL is warning that many areas are likely to suffer this summer with the large-scale reduction of weekend cleaning due to budget cuts. A further concern is that cities’ are not doing as well as the towns as the peak tourist season begins.
Letterkenny finished in 34th position holding onto its ‘Clean to European Norms’ status. The survey of 60 towns and cities, conducted by An Taisce on behalf of IBAL, revealed Wexford to be Ireland’s cleanest town, ahead of Ennis. The number of “Litter Free” areas nationwide hit a record high of 41. Athlone and Mallow were the country’s sole litter blackspots.
An Taisce comment, Letterkenny: “The top ranking sites in Letterkenny were not just clear of litter but very well presented e.g. Aldi, Lifford Approach Road and Town Centre. There were some moderately littered sites which could easily be improved with a little extra care and attention e.g. Dunfanaghy Approach Road and Neil T Blaney Approach. There was one site surveyed in Letterkenny which was a serious litter problem – Dual Carriageway from Lifford Road to Buncrana Road – heavy levels of both ‘old’ and ‘new’ litter blighted this road.”
An Taisce comment, Buncrana: “First time that Buncrana has been included in IBAL Anti-Litter Survey. Half of the sites surveyed got the top litter grade and some of these were not just clear of litter but in excellent condition e.g. Buncrana Seafront / Picnic Area. The two most heavily littered sites were Lisfannon Beach and Shore Line and Beach at Picnic Area – there was very deliberate discarding of rubbish (e.g. tied plastic bags).”
“We are delighted to have so many areas classed as ”Clean to European norms” in this first round of the 2009 litter league,” commented Dr. Tom Cavanagh, Chairman, Irish Business Against Litter. “However, we fear a deterioration over the summer as weekend cleaning budgets get slashed in many areas. We saw over the June Bank holiday weekend how beaches were seriously affected by the lack of weekend cleaning, and it is quite evident in this survey with beaches in Buncrana and Tramore being classed as “seriously littered”.
“As summertime brings tourists and outdoor activity to most areas this is a major worry, which is not limited to beaches, but extends to all public places.”
IBAL estimates that many local councils are making, on average, savings of €750 per week when cutting their weekend cleaning budgets and contend such a saving to be a false economy. “Litter is one area of spend where any cuts will be immediately visible, in littered pavements, parks and beaches. Set against the significant time and money which local hotels and shops have invested in tourism over the past decade, these cuts are small – but they can be enough to undo the good work done in any town,” added Dr. Cavanagh.
“In recent years Ireland has improved its performance on environmental and green issues in the eyes of our visitors. It is essential that this trend continues and the recent reduction in weekend cleaning and litter collection particularly at visitor attractions is a serious threat to the level of visitor satisfaction and must be addressed urgently by all local authorities” said John Power Chief Executive of Irish Hotels Federation and member of IBAL
Tourism is worth approximately €6billion to the national economy each year. 70% of the 8million annual tourists enter the country through Dublin, one-third of them during the summer months.
In contrast to towns, Ireland’s cities are not showing much improvement in litter levels over the last year. Galway was classed as “Moderately Littered” with Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Waterford all graded as “Littered” areas. “These are all critical tourist hubs,” Dr Cavanagh continued. “Hundreds of thousands of tourists will be arriving here this Summer and most will be arriving into one of these cities. A positive first impression is a vital element of our tourist product.”
The inspectors found supermarket car parks generally to be a particular source of litter, with Tesco, Dunnes Stores and Costcutters all cited as magnets for litter in different areas. In contrast, train stations around the country fared very well and showed great improvements since the beginning of the league.
