80% of Irish towns as clean or cleaner than European norms
Killarney, which won the national Tidy Towns competition last year, is in the final shake-up with Cavan and Kilkenny to top the Irish Business Against Litter’s (IBAL) anti-litter league and be named the country’s cleanest town.
But despite a major improvement in the overall cleanliness of towns and cities over the last decade, absentee landlords in north inner city Dublin, and littered train and bus stations, are still posing a problem.
Over 80% of Ireland’s towns are as clean or cleaner than the European average, IBAL’s 2012 litter survey has found. A total of 22 cities and towns from 42 surveyed by An Taisce were deemed ‘cleaner than European norms’, with 13 classed as ‘clean to European norms’.
No towns were ranked in the ‘littered’ or ‘seriously littered’ categories for the first time in IBAL’s 10-year history.
And only seven towns are below the average, including Dublin’s north inner city, which has again been branded a litter blackspot.
IBAL chairman Dr Tom Cavanagh described the improvement over the last decade as “quite remarkable”.
“Ten years ago, we could not have imagined that over half our towns would be cleaner than their European counterparts,” he said.
This year’s survey showed a striking improvement in the state of the roads around Dublin Airport which had been branded litter blackspots in previous reports, but they are now ‘clean to European norms’. Dublin city centre has also improved to ‘moderately littered’.
But Mr Cavanagh said the capital’s north inner city area recorded one of its worst results in 10 years. “Given that a great number of visitors to Ireland may be exposed to these areas not long after landing in Dublin, this performance risks tarnishing The Gathering experience,” he said.
Absentee landlords and property owners such as Nama and Irish Rail, must share the blame, he said, adding the Litter Act should be enforced in those areas and local pride among the residents and business people should be stimulated.
“Once the residents of these areas become proud of their clean streets, they will want them to stay that way, and cleaning costs will fall,” he said.
Maynooth, Carlow, and Dundalk were the only towns to fall short of ‘clean to European norms’ status.
Dog fouling and chewing gum were prevalent everywhere, the former particularly in Wexford and Tramore. Chewing gum was a major problem in Maynooth and Tallaght town centre. Cork’s Kent railway station came bottom of the pile, with its car park described as being ‘in the worst state for years’ by the An Taisce inspector.
Galway was the best performing train station, with its platform described as ‘gleaming’. Mullingar was the cleanest bus station.
Carrignafoy Community College in Cobh, Co Cork, was deemed to be the cleanest in Ireland, but Presentation College Cork, Ionad Pobail Community School Naas, Moyne College Ballina, and Ennis NS were littered.
The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Dublin’s Conrad Hotel today.
MODERATELY LITTERED
Cork City.
Dundalk.
Limerick City.
Carlow.
Dublin City.
Maynooth.
LITTER BLACKSPOT
North Inner City Dublin.
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