Furniture dumped at cancer centre

HOUSEHOLD furniture and an 18ft trailer were among the items found illegally dumped by the roadside near Ruan village last week, with locals appalled that the quiet woodland area has been turned into an “eyesore”.
The rubbish was dumped under cover of darkness, with five armchairs discarded at the entrance to the Clare 250 Cancer Centre at Ballygriffey and a badly damaged twin-axel trailer abandoned at the entrance to the Coillte forest.
According to one local person, “It’s an absolute eyesore. I don’t understand what kind of people can come along and do this. This is a very quiet road and, unfortunately, forested areas tend to attract these kind of people. They came during the night and left their rubbish here and it’s a disgrace.”
Ennis West Councillor Tom McNamara condemned those responsible and called for CCTV cameras to be installed to prevent further dumping.
“Unfortunately, there are ongoing problems with illegal dumping across the county and I would like to see cameras put in the area as a deterrent. It’s unbelievable to see this kind of dumping and once people know that cameras are in place, it deters them. The laws are there to prosecute these people,” he said.
According to Betty Devanny of the Environment and Water Services Directorate of Clare County Council, an inspection of the area has been carried out by the local authority and measures have been taken to facilitate the disposal of the waste.
She outlined, “A complaint was recorded in the Environment Section of Clare County Council on Thursday, July 7, regarding illegal disposal of household furniture at the entrance to the Clare Cancer Centre at Ballygriffey, Ruan.
“An inspection was carried out by the environmental patrol warden on the same day and it was established that the illegally dumped material, that is, household furniture, was on private property in the ownership of Clare Cancer Centre,” she said.
“The Clare Cancer Centre was made aware of this and following discussion with management at the centre and as a gesture of goodwill, a free pass to the Central Waste Management Facility at Inagh was offered to the Clare Cancer Centre to facilitate the free disposal of the illegally dumped furniture. 
“Clare County Council is awaiting vehicle details from the Clare Cancer Centre in order to issue the free pass,” she concluded.