2 days ago
- Business
- Irish Independent
Concerns as fewer litter fines issued in south Dublin area
New figures from South Dublin County Council (SDCC) show the total number of fines issued for littering has fallen from 517 in 2022, to 397 in 2024.
The council was responding to a request from Niamh Fennell, Sinn Féin councillor for Palmerstown-Fonthill, to break down fines issued by litter wardens in the county over the previous three years.
The total number of complaints made under the Litter Pollution Act and investigated by the litter warden service in the county between 2022 and 2024 was 4,264.
This led to a total of 1,413 fines issued in the SDCC area during those three years.
Derren Ó Brádagh, a Sinn Féin area rep for the Lucan area, said the local community had been reporting more waste in public areas and less enforcement around it.
'I live in Lucan where we have been combatting litter as a problem,' he said.
'We have to fight for the basics, even public litter bins to be put in some areas in West Lucan where it's the developer or the council's responsibility to do so.
'People's concern is about a lack of enforcement, specifically when it comes to fast food outlets.
'On weekends, we see more waste in our villages and streets, it's packaging from very well known, large fast food takeaways.'
Litter fines in Lucan have gone down from 70 to 43 between 2022 and 2024.
'We don't see enough litter wardens going around or enough action being taken. There have been concerns over the number of wardens reducing over the last few years,' Mr Ó Brádagh said.
'In Lucan, that's a 39pc decrease in fines being issued, which is hard to understand considering that the population has grown exponentially since 2022.'
Under the Litter Pollution Act, food outlets have a responsibility to keep the area surrounding their premises litter-free within a 100-metre radius.
Businesses are expected to provide bins within their vicinity and to clean up within that area.
According to SDCC's own Litter Management Plan, dropping or leaving litter in a public place is an offence which can result in a €150 penalty or a fine of €4,000 through the courts.
'Here in Lucan, you can find challenging types of litter, like pizza boxes, around fast food outlets within that 100-metre radius all the time,' Mr Ó Brádagh said.
'This is waste that clearly originates from these businesses and is their responsibility to clear. We're not seeing enough enforcement action.'
Mr Ó Brádagh also raised the concern that local councils are growing more dependent on community groups to take care of litter problems.
'There are a number of tidy town groups and residents groups where people have taken on these responsibilities themselves,' he said.
'We're concerned that developers and councils become dependent on the voluntary work of residents that are routinely doing litter clean-ups on a weekly or monthly basis.'
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme
