Latest news with #BarryWoods
Irish Times
4 days ago
- Irish Times
CCTV finally installed to catch dumpers in Dublin's worst litter black spot
CCTV cameras, due to be erected last January to catch illegal dumpers in Dublin's north inner city, have finally been installed. Dublin City Council last September announced plans to use CCTV to identify illegal dumpers for the first time in almost a decade. The north inner city is regularly ranked the dirtiest area in the State. Three streets in the area were chosen as pilot locations for the scheme: Belvedere Place, Sherrard Street Lower and Summer Street North. New CCTV cameras have been installed on three streets in Dublin's north inner city to catch illegal dumpers. Photograph: Olivia Kelly These streets, off the North Circular Road close to Mountjoy Square, are in Dublin's worst litter black spot, regularly cited as the State's dirtiest urban area by anti-litter organisation Irish Business Against Litter (Ibal). READ MORE The council had planned to install the CCTV last January, but the project was delayed after it emerged the cameras could not be attached to existing public lighting poles, as had been planned by the waste management division. Some cabling powering street lights also powered traffic lights, and the council's lighting section was concerned that vandalism to the cameras could 'knock out the traffic lights', Barry Woods, the council's head of waste management, told councillors earlier this year. New poles have instead been erected on the three streets and have been equipped with solar-powered cameras. The cameras have been switched on in recent days and are now 'fully operational', the council said. Signs warning that the cameras are in use for the 'prevention, deterring, detection and prosecution' of illegal dumping have been attached to each pole. Illegal dumpers face fines of €150 or up to €4,000 if convicted in the District Court. A new CCTV camera has been installed on Belvedere Place to catch illegal dumpers. Photograph: Olivia Kelly On Wednesday morning, the three streets appeared to be free of any obvious illegally-dumped bags or other significant signs of fly-tipping, although some litter had accumulated on Sherrard Street Lower in a gap between newly installed planters and the footpath. The council used CCTV a decade ago to combat illegal dumping, with significant success achieved in reducing litter levels. In 2014, it began installing CCTV at litter black spots, mostly in the north inner city, as part of a crackdown on dumping. It subsequently erected a poster featuring 12 dumpers with their faces blurred. However, the move aroused the attention of the Data Protection Commission , which questioned the proportionality of the scheme and the dumpers' rights to privacy. The commission in 2018 undertook an investigation of CCTV use by local authorities nationally and concluded that existing litter pollution and waste management law did not provide for using CCTV to identify dumpers. New legislation, the Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022, amended the Litter Pollution Acts to allow CCTV use. The council spent two years working with various State agencies to develop a new scheme. Data-protection impact assessments were subsequently approved for the three pilot streets. Following the north inner-city pilot, the council plans to extend CCTV to bottle and textile banks, where there is a high level of illegal dumping, before considering some suburban areas for the scheme.
Irish Times
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Lights, cameras, inaction: CCTV cameras to catch Dublin's dumpers not installed ‘as they could knock out traffic lights'
CCTV cameras due to be operational from last January to catch illegal dumpers in Dublin's north inner city have not been installed due to a dispute between the council's waste and public lighting departments. Councillors were on Tuesday told the project has been delayed because the cameras cannot be attached to 'public lighting poles' as had been planned by the waste management division. Barry Woods, Dublin City Council 's head of waste management, said he had thought 'probably naively' that the cameras could be mounted on the existing public lighting system. 'Unfortunately, we have been advised by public lighting management that CCTV cameras cannot be attached to any of their assets.' READ MORE Some cabling powering street lights also powered traffic lights and the lighting section was concerned vandalism to the cameras could 'knock out the traffic lights', Mr Woods said. The lighting section had also said its lamp standards were 'heritage assets not suitable for mounting CCTV cameras,' he added. 'This has delayed the installation of CCTV cameras.' The waste management division was working with public lighting management and road works control to install new poles to accommodate CCTV cameras 'that will only use solar power for the first phase of the scheme', Mr Woods said. 'We anticipate poles and cameras being installed within the next four weeks.' Several councillors said they were unhappy the delay and that they had not been informed the cameras were not operational. Green Party councillor Janet Horner said she had spoken on radio last January 'defending the council' and 'insisting the council was going to fulfil its promise' to immediately install the cameras. 'I think it is really bad form seeing the timeline slip like this. We are the ones going out trying to communicate a public message on it,' she said. Mr Woods on Tuesday rejected any suggestion 'we are not committed as an executive to deliver a cleaner city'. The council was 'just about to roll out a major advertising campaign across the city to make people more aware of littering', he said. 'We don't create the litter, it's the public that create the litter,' he said. 'We are doing our bit.' The council had last September announced plans to use CCTV to identify illegal dumpers for the first time in almost a decade. Three streets in the north inner city, the capital's worst litter black spot, were chosen as pilot locations: Belvedere Place, Sherrard Street Lower and Summer Street North. The north inner city is continuously identified as the dirtiest urban area in the State by Irish Business Against Litter. The council installed CCTV a decade ago at litter black spots in the north inner city as part of a crackdown on illegal dumping. It subsequently erected a poster featuring 12 dumpers, with their faces blurred. However, the move aroused the attention of the Data Protection Commission , which questioned the proportionality of the scheme and the rights to privacy of the dumpers. The commission in 2018 undertook an investigation of CCTV use by local authorities nationally and concluded existing litter pollution and waste management law did not provide for using CCTV to identify dumpers. New legislation, the Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022, amended the Litter Pollution Acts to allow CCTV use, and the council has been working for the past two years with various State agencies to develop a new scheme. Mr Woods in January said the data-protection impact assessments had been approved for the three chosen streets and it envisaged the cameras being operational by the end of that month.
Irish Independent
09-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
‘It makes no sense whatsoever' – public toilets at the top of Grafton Street to be closed
In a report to Dublin city councillors, Barry Woods, Head of Waste Management Services, said the unit – which has been operating from 10am to 6pm, seven days a week – was originally intended as a short-term arrangement during the pandemic. The council has been spending nearly €400,000 a year to keep the toilets – the only public facility in the city centre – running since their installation in 2020. 'Usage has dropped significantly to 1,500 users per week from its peak in 2021, and the current operator for this unit is ceasing trading,' the report states. 'For these reasons, Dublin City Council intends to remove this temporary public toilet at the top of Grafton Street shortly.' The council says it is now looking at new ways to provide public toilet services in the city. In 2023, the council invited companies to share ideas and held discussions with two providers. One of the companies, which specialises in automated toilets, advised against placing unmanned public toilets in the city centre, warning that it could lead to anti-social behaviour. As a result, the council's Waste Management team has been working with the Dublin Beta Projects team to explore other types of public toilet models. These talks are still ongoing, and no final decision has yet been made on how the toilets will be managed or operated. The council is currently considering two possible locations for modular toilet units: Princes Street North (just off O'Connell Street), and the site of the current temporary unit at the top of Grafton Street. ADVERTISEMENT If these locations are deemed suitable, a planning process known as Part 8 will begin, alongside the search for the preferred operator. The council hopes to bring formal proposals to the South East and Central Area Committees by the third quarter of 2025. As part of a longer-term plan, public toilets will also be included in the design of the new College Green Public Realm Scheme. This major city centre project is due to begin construction in 2027. The council believes College Green is an ideal location for new public toilets, as there is sufficient space to accommodate different designs and operating models. However, the news of the removal of the public toilets at the top of Grafton Street has been met with criticism from some public representatives, including Green Party councillor Hazel Chu. 'I wouldn't mind if they were taking it away and had a permanent solution ready to go, but the timeline is that it's going to be 2025, 2026 before it even goes to Part 8 planning,' she said. 'With Part 8, it could take a while, so you're talking about at least two years without public facilities. 'The numbers were 20,000 during COVID because there were no shops open. 'I know there's a cost, but all things cost money. You balance the cost against whether it's worth it – and it is worth it, because it's a public facility that people need. 'They claim it's dropped to 1,500 a week now. Fine, that is a drop, but what are you going to tell those 1,500 people who currently need that toilet? Hold it in?' she added. She is bringing an emergency motion to the South East Area Committee meeting to keep the public toilets in place until a more permanent solution is found. Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon also criticised the decision to close Dublin city centre's only public toilets, calling it a 'short-sighted move'. Deputy Gannon, who represents Dublin Central, said: 'Closing the only public toilets in the middle of Dublin, just as we come into the busy summer season, makes no sense whatsoever. 'The need for public facilities is about to spike – more people will be out enjoying the city, attending events, and making use of our parks. We should be adding toilets, not taking them away. 'We've seen this same story play out again and again: an unwillingness to plan ahead; an allergy to practical public investment; and a government that doesn't understand how cities actually work,' he added.
