Illegal dumpers could be named and shamed

Illegal dumpers in Westmeath could soon face the prospect of being named and shamed.

At the April meeting of Mullingar Municipal District (MMD), councillors were informed that the council had procured mobile CCTV services to monitor dumping black spots across the county.

Welcoming the news, a number of councillors said that the local authority should follow the example of Dublin City Council, who have started displaying the photos of illegal dumpers at a litter black spot in the north inner city.

Cllr Paddy Hill, who submitted a motion calling for the installation of CCTV at Sailors’ Garden in Finea, said that something had to be done to tackle the problem.

He said that “until someone is brought to book, the problem will continue” there and at other dumping blackspots.

Labour’s Cllr Johnny Penrose described illegal dumping as a “blight” and said that it was “awfully frustrating” to see refuse dumped in isolated areas.
Sinn Féin’s Una D’Arcy said it is “absolutely disgusting to see people dumping” and the council needed to prosecute someone to make it “risk averse”.

She also noted that many dumpers do so in their own localities, which demonstrates “a lack of respect for the areas they live in”.

Cllr Andrew Duncan said that “strict” enforcement is needed to tackle the problem of illegal dumping.

“If photographs are taken they should be made public. Our scarce resources should be focused on two or three areas until we get a prosecution.”

Cllr John Shaw also voiced his support for a naming and shaming approach to illegal dumping. “If we get images from CCTV, we should put them out there,” he said.

Director of services for MMD, Martin Murray, told the representatives that in order to introduce naming and shaming for dumpers, the matter would have to go before the Environment Special Policy Committee.

He also said that the newly procured CCTV services will be rolled out to “historic” dumping black spots in the county, starting with Sailors’ Garden.