It’s claimed illegal dumpers in Clare need to be named and shamed in order to stamp out the crime.
It comes amid renewed calls for CCTV and drone technology to be deployed in blackspot areas on foot of a surge in reported incidents this year.
In February, former Minister Ossian Smyth signed off on laws that would allow local authorities to use surveillance systems to tackle illegal dumping and fly tipping.
Although long awaited in Clare, the new rules have their barriers, as signs have to be erected to inform people that cameras are in place and the council must demonstrate that every other enforcement measure has been attempted first.
In October, there was a further blow as following a preliminary survey of sites identified as blackspots, Clare County Council found they didn’t meet the “proportionality threshold” to warrant the use of surveillance technologies.
Ardnacrusha Fianna Fáil Councillor Rachel Hartigan says she receives up to ten calls a week relating to illegal dumping in South East Clare, particularly at Woodcock Hill in Meelick and insists CCTV is needed.
Clare County Council is warning, however, that illegal dumpers will be caught and punished if their illicit activity persists.
The local authority’s Waste Enforcement Team has already dealt with 670 such complaints this year.
In the last two months, 5 warning letters and 5 waste removal notices were issued to the operators of authorised and unpermitted sites.
Senior Executive Environmental Engineer Brendan Flynn says while compliance is preferred to enforcement, the goal is to remove the unwanted blight from the county.
A former Mayor of Ennis, meanwhile, believes a revision of GDPR is needed to name and shame those responsible.
Clarecastle Fine Gael Councillor Paul Murphy believes that while fixed surveillance is urgently needed at sites such as Clareabbey, he fears illegal dumpers would simply take note and create a new blackspot somewhere else.
He insists though that the greatest deterrent is to publicly punish offenders before the courts.
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