Repeated dumping of rubbish bags ‘not random’

Just a mile from Mullingar town centre, on the Ballymahon Road approach, bags of refuse are being dumped on a regular basis beside the canal car park and opposite The Moorings.

The issue was raised at the March meeting of Mullingar Kinnegad Municipal District by Cllr Ken Glynn, who asked that the council “take immediate action” to tackle the problem.

“I’ve been in contact with the district office about this a few times,” Cllr Glynn told the meeting, stressing that the problem was not the fault of either the county council or Mullingar Tidy Towns.

“It’s the fault of the perpetrators who are continuously dropping bags,” he said, saying that their actions were “not random”.

“This is targeted because it is happening so often,” he said. “Residents, in The Moorings in particular, have been in touch with me about this.”

He said that the actions of the illegal dumper are spoiling the amenity that has been put in place by the municipal district alongside the canal.

Furthermore, there was a cost to the district, and therefore the taxpayer, because of having to go out and collect the rubbish.

Cllr Glynn said that since he tabled his motion, the legislation allowing the use of CCTV had come through: “So I am requesting that this location would be considered as soon as possible for that, because realistically the only way we are going to stamp this out is to catch the people that are doing it.

“And this is on the approach into Mullingar. It’s just so unfair to the hard work that’s done by so many to maintain and help keep this town looking right, and it’s also unfair that residents have to look across at this on a daily basis. It’s infuriating. And I would ask that this area will be prioritised for CCTV monitoring as soon as possible, if possible.”

Cllr Aoife Davitt was strongly in support.

“It’s frustrating,” she said, saying the perpetrator was “continually and habitually” dumping refuse there.

“I thought that it was actually the residents who had been collecting the rubbish and leaving it for the council staff,” she said, explaining that she had since become aware that it was dumping by one person.

“Definitely we need to get our cameras; we need to start punishing the people and sending a message out there,” she said.

Support came too from Cllr Andrew Duncan, who admitted he suspected the culprit was a person who had in the past been prosecuted for illegal dumping.

However, he continued, a problem with prosecution is that it appears that many of those fined don’t actually pay the fines.

“So unfortunately, we have a situation where unless they are actually named and shamed and face serious consequences, they’re going to continue to do it,” he said.

“We can issue on-the-spot fines; we can do what we like, but ultimately, they’re laughing at us and it’s just wrong.”

Cllr Duncan said he believed there were just a small number of perpetrators – but they are destroying things for everybody.

“I’d say there’s no topic that has come up in this chamber more than flytipping and dumping like that, and we now are in a position where we can probably do something about it, and we’re going to have to do something about it,” he said, supporting the call for the use of CCTV and reiterating that naming and shaming was the only way the problem would be stopped.

Cllr Denis Leonard said he too has long called for the use of CCTV to counter illegal dumping and for naming and shaming. “But the enforcement is the key: once people are found; once they are prosecuted; once they are given a heavy fine, we must ensure that they pay, because that’s the only thing: start hitting these people in their pockets,” he said.

Director of services Deirdre Reilly agreed that the behaviour of the culprit was not acceptable, and said the council are looking into the rules surrounding the use of CCTV.

Written reply

The official written response from the Municipal District of Mullingar Kinnegad stated that both Westmeath County Council and Mullingar Tidy Towns are aware of this ongoing issue and are working collaboratively to endeavour to keep that area as litter free as possible.

Continued the reply:

“The Tidy Towns group are placing these bags at The Moorings to deter littering on the canal. For the most part, this is working well in reducing the litter along the walkway.

“The community warden and general supervisors regularly monitor this area and the bags are removed when they are full.”

It concluded by stating that the issue had been highlighted in the District and the Environment section to see if other measures could be taken to address this ongoing issue.