ENNIS has once again been found to be clean in the latest survey of 40 towns and cities by business group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL).
The An Taisce report for Ennis stated, “A solid result for Ennis with the approach roads and residential areas of Westfield and Cathedral Court very much deserving the top litter grade. There was one heavily littered site. Ennis Bus & Train Station was much improved compared to a few years ago – with a little extra care and attention it could be top ranking. Other sites which just missed the top litter grade included Merchant’s Square and O’Connell Street.”
Overall litter levels were on a par with 12 months ago. Naas finished atop the rankings for the third time in four years, ahead of five-time victor Kilkenny and Monaghan town. In all, 60% of the towns and cities surveyed were deemed ‘clean’.
2024 saw a further fall in the number of sites within cities and towns that were deemed ‘litter blackspots’. The survey also revealed a near-50% fall in the prevalence of plastic bottles and cans in the 500+ sites monitored since the Deposit Return Scheme was introduced last year.
“We are definitely seeing cans and bottles disappear from our streets, which is very welcome – not only are they unsightly, but the bottles contribute to the very real problem of plastic pollution. However, it is clear from our survey that people continue to discard a wide range of litter types with flagrant disregard for their surroundings,” says Conor Horgan. Sweet wrappers and fast-food wrappers were the most common litter types, ahead of plastic bags and coffee cups, which were present in over 20% of sites.