COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF LUCAN AREA COMMITTEE

Monday, February 23, 2015

QUESTION NO. 6

QUESTION: Councillor E. O'Brien

"To ask the Chief Executive for the number of fines issued for incidents of dog fouling in the Lucan Area in the last 12 months?"

REPLY:

Section 22 of the  Litter Pollution Act 1997 requires that any person in charge of a dog shall immediately remove faeces that has been deposited by the dog and shall ensure that it is properly disposed of in a suitable sanitary manner. It is an offence to contravene this section of the Act. 

It is not possible to provide a breakdown of the number of fixed penalty notices on an electoral area basis. In 2014 three (3) fines were issued in accordance with Section 22 of the Litter Pollution Act 1997, as amended (the Act), in relation to dog fouling. 

Problems arise in enforcing this section of the Act due to the difficulty in identifying the person in charge of the dog. Resident groups and/or individuals are urged to assist the Council in this regard by providing witness statements. 

In the context of the review of the Litter Management Plan the Council is initiating a new awareness programme to highlight the relative responsibilities,  problems and penalties associated with dog fouling.