Improvement in litter levels at Cork's Blackrock Castle but Dingle slips down ranking

Blackrock Castle. File picture: Larry Cummins

Blackrock Castle and Castletownbere in Cork were two areas that saw “dramatic” improvements in litter levels, however coffee cups have remained a significant polluter on beaches across Ireland, a new survey found. 

Overall, some 50% of beaches and waterways surveyed had improved their litter status to 'clean', the annual survey of coasts and inland waterways by business group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) found.

Thirty-three beaches, harbours, rivers and their immediate environs were monitored by An Taisce on behalf of IBAL in June and July. Seventeen were deemed ‘clean’, a 50% rise on the previous survey, while the number of areas branded ’littered’ fell from 11 to just three. Again, no area was placed in the lowest category “heavily littered”.

Tramore, Brittas Bay, Curracloe, Bundoran, Killiney and Strandhill were among the popular beaches to achieve clean status, alongside Portmarnock in Dublin, which registered a dramatic improvement on its previous ‘littered’ rating. 

A similar improvement was noted at Blackrock Castle and Castletownbere in Cork. However, Dingle slipped to ‘littered’, as did Dog’s Bay beach in Galway, alongside White Bay in Cork.

“This is by far the most favourable result we have seen in eight years of coastal surveys,” Conor Horgan of IBAL said. 

“The trojan and ever-expanding work of clean coasts groups and other volunteers is instrumental in this, as is the investment by councils in facilities around our beaches. Legislative measures, such as the tethering of caps to plastic bottles and the Deposit Return Scheme, are contributing factors. It appears also that local authorities have upped their game in responding to busy periods at our beaches.” 

“Blackrock Castle in Cork is illustrative of the positive change we have seen,” Mr Horgan said. “It is unrecognisable this summer from the site which was a magnet for dumped domestic appliances and all manner of rubbish in previous surveys.” 

Cigarette butts, sweet papers, fast food wrappers were the most commonly found litter items. The first coastal survey conducted since the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme showed a 30% drop in the prevalence of plastic bottles and cans. Vapes were less prevalent than in previous studies, but there was no fall in coffee cup litter, which was found in 42% of the sites surveyed.

“The coffee cup levy seems to have died with the last Government, but these findings show that the case for it has not died,” Mr Horgan said. “Coffee cups have become a permanent addition to the suite of litter items regularly found on our beaches. It’s not just their visual impact - many contain plastic, which threatens sea life and in turn our very survival.

"‘Coffee cup-free’ coastal areas, along the lines of the Killarney model, would be very welcome.” In 2022, Killarney became the first town in Ireland to phase out single-use coffee cups.

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