'Questions to answer' on rubbish
Westmeath County Council have “serious questions to answer” over how they have not enacted one prosecution for illegal dumping despite receiving more than 1,300 notifications from members of the public since the start of 2022.
That’s according to the mayor of the Mullingar Kinnegad Municipal District, Cllr Ken Glynn, who says he was “flabbergasted” when he heard that the council have not enacted a single prosecution for illegal dumping over the last three years.
Figures released to the Irish Independent on foot of a Freedom of Information request revealed that from January 2022 to the end of July 2024, the council had received a total of 1,317 reports of suspected illegal dumping across the county.
The majority (1,043) of the suspected incidents were reported in the Mullingar Kinnegad Municipal District, and a further 274 reports were received in the Athlone Moate Municipal District.
While the council issued 78 fines for illegal dumping in 2023 and 56 up until the end of July this year, they have enacted no prosecutions for illegal dumping since at least the start of 2022.
Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner, Cllr Glynn said that the local authority will have to explain why they have not enacted any prosecutions given the scale of the illegal dumping problem in the county.
“The number of reports shows how serious the problem is, but it’s incredible that there’ve been no prosecutions. I am being honest with you, I’m flabbergasted, but I’m not surprised at the number of complaints, and I commend people who take the time to contact the council and report illegal dumping.
“I think it’s very important that everybody plays a role of being responsible for the environment and being responsible for reporting this sort of stuff.
“I don’t know how many times I’ve had to ask the council to go to various locations at Lough Ennell and residential areas to do clean-ups.
“I remember a couch being left on the side of the road on the N52, just outside town. The problem is historical. It’s disappointing, and very frustrating.”
If people engaged in illegal dumping don’t face the prospect of prosecution, Cllr Glynn says that there is little to deter them from continuing.
“I know we have an excellent team that go out and work to try to stamp this out.
“Our hardworking outdoor staff are out there cleaning up messes. I was at one site myself only the other morning, which was in a residential area. It’s not on, what’s happening in terms of illegal dumping. The fact that there’s been zero prosecutions – that means there’s no deterrent for these people and I always say that illegal dumping is done by the minority rather than the majority.
“They’re the minority but they’re persistent, repeat offenders. I definitely think Westmeath County Council have to answer why there have been no prosecutions.”
The Westmeath Examiner contacted Westmeath County Council on Thursday, but at the time of going to press on Monday afternoon had not received a response.