Recruitment to address ‘worst in country’ EPA rank for county
A poor showing in an assessment of Westmeath local authority by the EPA was down to staffing issues, members of the Municipal District of Mullingar Kinnegad were told at their May meeting.
Cllr Andrew Duncan’s question to the executive asked for details of plans to address Westmeath’s “worst in country” ranking in the EPA’s most recent environmental report from 2023 data.
The local authority said the environment section, in partnership with the community wardens, planned to carry out 7,010 routine and non-routine inspections in 2023. In total 7,504 inspections were carried out.
The reply continued: “Unfortunately, WCC did not meet its planned targets in relation to farmyard and farmland inspections and as a result this largely contributed to it being one of the lowest performing LAs in 2023.”
The executive said it was a resources issue and that was addressed:
“This was simply due to a lack of trained inspectors. Some of our team members left to join Uisce Éireann. That, coupled with a difficulty in hiring suitably qualified personnel, left WCC’s environment section short staffed during 2023 and for part of 2024.
“WCC’s HR section has worked to fill some of the vacancies in 2024, but it’s likely there will be constant movement in this area. Meeting the environmental annual targets is staff dependent.
“We can advise that all 2024 targets in relation to farmyard and farmland inspections were met and exceeded. It is considered that this will improve Westmeath’s EPA scoring grade for 2024.”
The reply concluded by saying: “The Environment team are continuing to seek continuous improvement in this area.”
Cllr Duncan said the focusing on farmland inspections was a narrow scope and environmental inspectors should prioritise reviews of waterway issues.
You can view the report here:
Domestic Waste Water Treatment System Inspections 2024
National Inspection Plan Domestic Waste Water Treatment Systems 2022 - 2026
Smart benches
In another motion, Cllr Duncan also suggested that the local authority install smart benches at the Market Square and Dominick Square, Mullingar town centre.
Smart urban street furniture is a technological innovation that provides public service information, and connectivity, and also enables the collection of environmental data.
In the reply, the local authority said the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) section has advised that smart benches previously installed by the council were funded through a community lead grant application.
“The ICT Section has not made any provision for smart bench installation in their current budget, but would be in a position to assist smart bench setups if funding became available,” the executive reply read.