Data protection concerns over using CCTV to combat illegal dumping should be rubbished

The scourge of illegal dumping across County Tipperary has been highlighted time and again by elected representatives over the last number of years.

And, such actions by thoughtless criminals is costing Tipperary County Council a fortune as they are forced to deploy crews to dumping hotspots to clean up the mess afterwards.

Many councillors have called for CCTV to be used in these hotspots in a bid to catch the offenders and to deter such activity. However, it has now emerged that this might be against data protection laws.

Questioning the Minister, Labour Senator Mark Wall raised the issue of balancing data protection rights with deterring this type of behaviour. Local authorities must be enabled to address this harmful behaviour.

Senator Wall said:

“Illegal dumping is a scourge throughout the country that is causing untold damage to our environment. There are many community groups who continue to volunteer to protect their local area by cleaning up illegally dumped waste. Illegal dumping can potentially cause severe problems for those in rural areas, including preventing flood waters from draining effectively, and local authorities must be empowered to address this.

“One tool long used by local authorities as an effective deterant is CCTV. Despite this, it would seem that question marks are being raised around the use of CCTV by our local authorities due to data protection concerns. I am asking the Minister to investigate this, as well as working with my Labour Party colleagues around the current legislation on the issues surrounding illegal dumping.

“The reality is, being able to identify the culprits through the use of CCTV is a deterrent to this behaviour. My own local authority are now reporting 40 to 50 incidents of illegal dumping each week, many of these are at locations which have just recently been cleaned at a cost to us all.  

“The Minister needs to take a common sense approach to this problem, and a balance between privacy and the common good must be struck. Illegal dumping is a serious issue and a blight on our countryside.”