Clare County Council has spent €150,000 in legal costs as part of so-far unsuccessful efforts to remove one illegal encampment from the Ennis area.
The site in question, located near the Kilrush Road, is one of six illegal encampments currently in place in Clare, according to the local authority.
The Council says the six illegal encampments in this county are located on the outskirts of Ennis.
One of those, located near to the Kilrush Road, has been in place there for over two years now, and last October the Council was granted a permanent injunction by the High Court to seek its removal.
This has been appealed to the Court of Appeal, where judgements is awaited.
So far, the Council says it has incurred around 150,000 euro in legal fees as a result of this action.
In respect of the other sites, the Council says it has issued notices to the occupants of two other sites, requiring occupants to move elsewhere, but these have not been complied with to date.
The Council has also pointed out that it, and other local authorities, have been asked by the Department not to remove families from unauthorised sites for the curation of the current Level 5 restrictions, so they will have to be lifted before any further action is taken.
