Dozens of homes without bin collection in county Tipperary town, council meeting told

A Carrick-on-Suir councillor has informed a Tipperary County Council official he is aware of dozens of households in his hometown that don’t have a bin collection with their neighbours having to suffer an unsightly view of rubbish building up.

Cllr Kieran Bourke highlighted the extent of the problem to Michael Moroney, Senior Executive Officer of the council’s Environment & Climate Action Section at Carrick-on-Suir Municipal District’s January meeting in Carrick-on-Suir Town Hall.

He did so after asking Mr Moroney for an update on the council’s follow up checks on how households dispose of their waste.

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Mr Moroney informed him the council undertakes waste collection surveys on households (both council and privately owned) where the householders are required to produce proof they are using a waste collection service or disposing their waste at a council amenity centre.

If that proof isn’t produced the council’s enforcement officer follows up with them and can go down the route of issuing a fixed penalty notice and ultimately take a prosecution to court.

He pointed out the council obtained its first successful prosecution under the waste management by-laws in the courts last year.

Cllr Bourke said he was taken aback to hear it was the council’s first successful prosecution and noted it showed the complexity of the process.

He said he was aware of dozens of houses in his hometown that didn’t have a bin collection, leaving their neighbours to see a build up of rubbish.

And he pointed out the council’s tenant liaison officer was aware of some of them.

Mr Moroney responded that obtaining evidential proof was required to obtain a successful prosecution.

He assured Cllr Bourke that now the council had successfully tested the bye-laws legislation, the local authority was prepared to go all the way to the courts with such cases.

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