Council staff ‘put at risk trying to clean up dumping’

ILLEGAL dumping by householders along a dangerous stretch of roadway is putting the lives of council staff trying to clean up the mess at risk, councillors warned yesterday.

Indiscriminate dumping has spiralled in Waterford and with major hikes in refuse charges on the way in the city and county, it is feared that the problem is about to get much worse.

The Cliff Road in Tramore has become the latest dumping blackspot, with bags of refuse being dumped onto the rocks below the road.

The coastguard service cleaned up the area last year but has not approached the issue this summer as the area where rubbish is strewn is deemed far too dangerous to navigate.

Independent councillor James McCartan says the problem has to be addressed because of the threat to the lives of council staff who are trying to clean up the area.

“These are dangerous cliffs. The county council workmen can’t get down to clean them up.

“I wouldn’t even expect them to go down and try to clean them up. I would appeal to the people who are stopping their cars on the road and throwing their rubbish onto the rocks below to please stop.”

Just last month, Fianna Fáil councillor Tom Murphy also focused on the situation and urged that spy cameras should be installed in dumping blackspots as a way of catching people.

“There’s an awful lot of illegal dumping going on in the Tramore area in particular. It poses a health hazard for people. These people who are dumping have no concern for their neighbours or for anyone else.

“A lot of people have been dumping on the Green Road in particular.”

The recent Irish Businesses Against Litter report commended Waterford on its efforts to ensure the region is as clean as its European counterparts. In the latest survey, Waterford was described as the cleanest county in the country.