Volunteers recover 19 bags of rubbish from park area
By Mary Dennehy
COMMUNITY volunteers collected 19 large bags of rubbish from Sean Walsh Park and its streams last weekend, with some of the rubbish found posing a risk to both wildlife and members of the public.
Some 13 volunteers took part in a clean-up organised by the Tallaght Litter Mugs and sup-ported by Dodder Action on Saturday, February 22.
Sean Walsh Park, where the waste was collected
After meeting at the Recycling Centre at Sean Walsh Park, the team split into two groups, one headed towards Watergate Park while the second followed the Dublin Mountain Way from the trail-head within the park.
According to volunteer and Firhouse resident Wladek Gaj, a large volume of waste was discovered in a stream as it enters the park close to the roundabout on Whitestown Way.
Wladek told The Echo: “Layers of plastic bags, crisp packets, plastic drinks bottles, plastic cartons, glass bottles, baby wipes, polystyrene and discarded syringes lined the banks of this charming hill stream, which flows from the direction of Kiltipper Hill.
“Close by in a wooded area sandwiched between a housing estate and a main thoroughfare, a plastic bottle swamp and a ‘heavy item’ illegal dump was discovered.
“As efforts are underway to develop a tourism strategy for South Dublin County, maintenance and protection of walking trails will be of primary importance.”
Speaking about the level of polystyrene found, Wladek said: “When it breaks into small pieces fish and birds mistake polystyrene for insect eggs and or fish roe, and they ingest the small pellets.
Some of the syringes found
“Polystyrene presents a challenge to environmental clean-up volunteers as it breaks up into such tiny pieces, the responsible disposal of polystyrene is of vital importance.”
Environmental groups such as Dodder Action and Tallaght Litter Mugs are also looking for new volunteers, and can be found on Facebook.
Local groups are also linked into the South Dublin Environmental Network, which posts a monthly calendar of events on its Facebook page and Twitter account.
