Extensive clean-up planned along banks of River Dodder

AN EXTENSIVE clean-up along the banks of the River Dodder, called Dodder Day, is returning for the first time since the pandemic this Saturday, April 13, from 10am.

The initiative will span the entire length of the river, stretching from Tallaght up to Irishtown and Ringsend, and is being led by volunteer group Dodder Action.

All are welcome to take part, all they need to do is show up at 10am at one of several meet up points wearing gardening gloves. Local meeting points include Old Bawn Community School, the junction of Avonbeg and Avonmore roads in Tallaght, and the Dodder Valley Park car park opposite the Speaker Conolly in Firhouse.

There will also be a meeting point in Cherryfield, specifically at the car park on the Firhouse Road/Spawell Link Road, and the volunteers will be tasked with cleaning different sections of the river.

The contingent meeting at OBCS will clean the river in Sean Walsh Park, the volunteers at Avonbeg and Avonmore will clean the Whitestown Stream from Bolbrook to St Dominic’s.

People meeting at the car park opposite the Speaker Conolly can clean from either Dodder Valley Park to Old Bawn, or Dodder Valley Park to the Balrothery Weir.

The volunteers meeting at Cherryfield will clean the section of the River Dodder from Dodder Valley Park to the M50 underpass, while other sections in Milltown, Clonskeagh and Ringsend will be cleaned by other volunteers.

“This is the first Dodder Day since deposits were introduced on bottles and cans,” said a spokesperson for Dodder Action.

“As the group which first proposed the measure, we will be interested to see if it has made any difference as yet to the riverbanks.

“Any member of the public who wishes to join can just pick one of the meet-up points listed and turn up on the day wearing gardening gloves.”

For more information visit the Dodder Action website HERE or Dodder Action on Facebook HERE.