THE annual survey of coasts and inland waterways by business group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) shows Lahinch and Doolin both deemed ‘littered’, with Mountshannon also slipping, to ‘moderately littered’. According to the An Taisce report for Lahinch while the main beach area was “generally fine” it was the prom, rock armour and carparks which brought down the overall litter grade. “Heavy levels” of litter including drinks cans, fast food wrappers, cigarette butts and dog fouling were reported. Marine litter such as fishing crates, nets, ropes etc along with food items was found trapped in the rock armour near the promenade. An Taisce adjudicators found a filled black sack discarded by a ‘Big Bell’ bin with other items accumulated on top. While older bins looked “tired” with a risk of their contents being taken out by birds highlighted. The report also noted the “freshly presented” dog fouling facility was in “very good order”. Meanwhile the An Taisce report for Doolin pier …
Read More »Volunteers and council staff praised as Ennis cleans up in IBAL ranking
ENNIS’ success in this year’s Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) survey, which saw the county capital take third place nationwide, has been attributed to the hard work and dedication of volunteers as well as council staff. Mayor of Ennis, Councillor Paul Murphy, in acknowledging the results of the IBAL survey, said, “I am delighted to see Ennis once again achieve best in class for litter cleanliness, particularly given the increase in the numbers enjoying recreational activities outdoors. This success can be attributed to the hard work and dedication of our volunteers in community groups, especially Ennis Tidy Towns, as well as Council staff.” Cllr Murphy acknowledged and supported the positive comments regarding the presentation of the sites inspected. Carmel Kirby, Director of Services, Physical Development Directorate, Clare County Council, said, “Maintaining the highest level in the IBAL nationwide litter survey is not an easy feat to accomplish, and huge credit goes to all who contribute to maintaining the town’s cleanliness. …
Read More »Cleaning up with IBAL success highlights Ennis’ appeal
ENNIS’ success in this year’s Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) survey along with other recent successes has highlighted the town’s appeal as a place to live, work and visit. That’s according to Mayor of Ennis Councillor Paul Murphy, one of a number who welcomed this week’s announcement that the county capital had achieved the highest cleanliness level in the most recent IBAL nationwide litter survey. Eight out of 10 sites surveyed in the town by An Taisce were awarded the top litter grade with the town found to be “cleaner than European norms”. The first nationwide litter survey by business group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) since the Covid-19 crisis shows Ennis to be again ‘Cleaner than European Norms’ climbing to sixth spot in the ranking of 40 towns and cities nationwide. The county capital has bucked the trend with a nationwide dramatic fall in the number of towns and cities deemed to be ‘clean’ in the survey, its lowest …
Read More »Ennis slips in litter league
THE final litter survey of 2015 by Irish Business Against Litter shows Ennis has slipped to ‘moderately littered’, in 32nd spot among the 40 towns surveyed. The town was also 32nd in the 2014 rankings, but was Clean to European Norms. There was a slight fall-off in the number of litter-free towns across Ireland, but no towns were deemed ‘litter blackspots’ and only one was ‘seriously littered’. An Taisce’s report for Ennis stated, “Both the residential areas in Ennis got the top litter grade and Francis Street Bottle Bank has a novel design to prevent the accumulations of rubbish that so frequently occur at recycle facilities – clearly it is having the desired effect as it was a top ranking site. The two most heavily littered sites in Ennis were Knox’s Bridge Amenity Scheme and St Anne’s School.” Three quarters of the towns and cities surveyed by An Taisce on behalf of IBAL were found to be Clean to …
Read More »One million ‘missing’ rubbish bags
ONE million black bags of household waste are unaccounted for in Clare every year, the Mayor of Ennis has revealed. Councillor Johnny Flynn was commenting on the latest Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) survey released this week. For the first time, IBAL inspected the cleanliness of national connecting routes between towns, which were found to be typically more littered than the towns themselves. In respect of Ennis, An Taisce reported, “scattered litter consistently along the Galway road. No one area was worse than another. While the litter was not heavy, it was certainly noticeable”. “It is a valid criticism,” said Mayor Flynn. “There are one million black bags of household waste unaccounted for in Clare every year and there is a huge problem of fly-tipping and illegal dumping, especially in the areas surrounding the urban centres. There has been lot of dumping on the approach roads to towns and villages, in isolated areas and around beauty spots, like Ballyalla. Clare …
Read More »Ennis ‘clean to European norms’
Ennis is again “Clean to European Norms”, in 23rd position of the 40 areas surveyed, the latest survey by Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) has revealed. Ennis was previously in 33rd spot. In all, 75% of towns and cities were found to be as clean as or cleaner than their European counterparts. Kilkenny and Cavan were once again Ireland’s cleanest towns, and were among 18 towns to be deemed cleaner than the European average. An Taisce reported: “Ennis has retained its Clean to European norms status with another mid-ranking result. It would be nice to see this town push on to a higher position in the table. The top ranking sites in Ennis were not just clear of litter but well presented and maintained e.g. Clare Leisure World, Garden of Remembrance and Recycle Facility at Ennis Shopping Centre. A Clare County Council Recycle Bank at Leisure Facility was moderately littered. The Mill Road River Walk was seriously littered – many different aspects of this site were in poor shape. For …
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