Tallaght loses ‘clean’ status in the national litter survey

TALLAGHT has lost its ‘clean’ status in a national litter survey, which also noted a significant rise in pandemic-related litter nationwide.

The Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) survey released its most recent results this week, with areas right across Dublin continuing to ‘struggle’.

In IBAL’s study of 40 towns and cities, Dublin City Centre has fallen to ‘heavily littered’ and is now ranked in 38th place.

Closer to home, Tallaght has lost its ‘clean’ status, backstepping to number 27 in the IBAL anti-litter league.

According to IBAL, it’s “disappointing” that Tallaght has lost its ‘clean’ status.

“[Tallaght] was an area of extremes – the seven top ranking sites were very well presented and maintained,” IBAL said in its report.

“Examples of these included Whitestown Way, Tallaght Village and Sean Walsh Memorial Park at Whitestown Way.

“At the other end of the spectrum there were three sites which were very heavily littered, one of them subject to particularly heavy levels of household dumping – Pedestrian Access to Cheeverstown Road from Kilmartin Drive.

“The other heavily littered sites were Mac Uilliam Crescent and adjacent streets and Fortunestown Lane to Fortunestown Way.”

The heavily littered sites listed by IBAL are all locations frequently flagged by residents, groups and councillors as areas that need attention, with previous reports published in The Echo.

IBAL also reported that overall, it’s survey noted that PPE litter was at ‘record levels’, with an increase in the presence of both masks and gloves nationwide.

IBAL’s Conor Horgan said: “It would appear that this litter is accumulating as the pandemic continues, as there remains an understandable reticence to pick up other people’s PPE.

“The disposable blue face mask has become a ubiquitous part of the landscape up and down the country.

“People have not moved to reusable masks and people are not taking care of their masks.”

IBAL also reported a “significant rise” in other pandemic-related litter, such as coffee cups, with alcohol-related litter remaining at previous levels despite hospitality since reopening.

The litter league has once again criticised the “failure” of local authorities to clean up sites identified in its surveys as heavily littered.

Of the 89 sites highlighted in its survey last summer, only 33 per cent had been addressed by the time of IBAL’s most recent survey.

“In our last study we flagged litter in our cities as having reached levels not seen in 10 years,” Mr Horgan said.

“Unfortunately, recent months have only brought further deterioration.

“Our towns are much cleaner than they were say 15 years ago, but it seems our cities have reverted to the bad old days of the noughties, with litter the norm rather than the exception.”

Set up in 1996 by an alliance of companies, the IBAL Anti-Litter League involves An Taisce monitoring towns independently and in accordance with international grading standards.