Illegal dumping scourge is on the increase in Tipperary

Tipperary is under siege from the scourge of illegal dumping with many of the beautiful bogs and scenic areas being destroyed by people who simply do not care about the environment or their community.

Illegal dumping has been described as one of the most hideous acts of blatant disregard. People are prepared to put their rubbish into the boot of their car and drive out into the countryside to dump it illegally, rather than having it disposed of in a correct manner. And, what is even more annoying is that a high percentage of the dumped materials are recycleable and can be disposed of free of charge in the local recycling centres.

Tipperary County Councillor Jim Ryan has highlighted many areas where illegal dumping is taking place and he has welcomed a council initiative to use drones in a bid to catch people dumping illegally. However, he also states that the local authority needs to get its act together in order to ensure that their own properties are secured and inaccessible to would be dumpers - Clohessy Place in The Ragg being a case in point.

Above: Cllr Jim Ryan.

“I have been raising the Clohessy Place issue for a number of months now and we have this crazy situation where a council owned field at the back of the estate is totally covered with rubbish. It is causing untold problems for residents, all because a gate into the field is not being locked. And, it is proving very hard to get the council to do something about it,” Cllr Ryan said.
The Independent councillor points to a Midlands Waste Management Plan which was drawn up and published during his time on Thurles Town Council. The plan stated that each town should have a recycling centre, however this was subsequently removed in a revised plan and Thurles town still does not have a recycling centre.

“I cannot understand how a town the size of Thurles does not have a recycling centre. All the other major towns of the county have recycling centres and I am certain that if there was to be a facility provided in Thurles, it would make a huge difference and would result in a reduction in the level of illegal dumping.

“We can see when the WEEE Ireland collections take place locally, that there is a huge take-up of the service, but they don't take place often enough in my opinion. If there were to be more regular WEEE collections throughout the county, I think that would make a big difference, but at the moment there might be 1/2 a year and that's not enough. The volume of materials which are presented at those collections is staggering,” Cllr Ryan said.

With the fine weather and summer holidays prompting people outdoors at the present time, the countryside is a very attractive draw for families. Walking, cycling and even jogging has become a way of life for many and forest trails, bogs and lakes are all on the agenda for those seeking to take exercise and see a bit of the countryside. However, despite signage all over the district warning of illegal dumping, the ditches, drains and margins are destroyed with rubbish and discarded matter, thereby ruining the scenic beauty of many of the locations.

As well as being extremely unsightly, the dumping of materials is also very bad for the environment and results in much pollution of lakes and drains - tyres have become a particular scourge in recent times and are a big polluter.
So please, play your part in protecting the environment - report illegal dumping and dumpers. The environment belongs to us all.