Did you know?
- Regulations have been signed this week that will allow all local authorities to use CCTV, drones and body cams to catch people in the act of littering or dumping leading to further prosecutions.
- Despite efforts by community groups and Councillors incidents of littering and illegal dumping are being reported all over the county.
- Wexford Senator Malcolm Byrne has been campaigning on this issue since his entry to the Oireachtas and pointed to a survey of local Councils he conducted in 2021 that found that Ireland spends up to €100m each year dealing with illegal dumping and littering.
- The Circular Economy Act 2022 made provision for the technology to be used in a way that complies with data protection regulations but a delay by the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) in developing local codes meant that it is only now that the measures can be enforced.
- A person guilty of an offence under the Litter Prevention Act may be subject to summary conviction to a fine up to €3000 and up to €600 per day for continuing offences. A person convicted on indictment may be subject to a fine up to €130,000 and €10,000 a day for continuing offences. The minimum on-the-spot fine for littering is €150. This may increase in court to €3,000 along with the local authority’s costs and expenses. It should be noted that litter offences include inappropriate disposal of items at bottle bank facilities or in the vicinity of public bins.
- Until now, there have been limits on how technology has been deployed by local authorities in this way.
- Last year, Senator Byrne contacted local authorities and discovered that nationally, they spent in total up to €100 million a year dealing with illegal dumping and littering.
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