COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
Monday, February 11, 2019
QUESTION NO. 17
QUESTION: Councillor C. O'Connor
To ask the Chief Executive if he shares the concerns of members in respect of the serious illegal dumping of household waste in the Dublin mountains in recent times; will he outline what actions are being taken in respect of the matter and in responding will he also take the opportunity to confirm what assistance is available from the Council to local volunteers working to combat such disgraceful behavior.
REPLY:
The PURE - Protecting Uplands and Rural Environments project is a regional initiative involving South Dublin, Wicklow, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Councils and as well as Coillte, National Parks & Wildlife Service, and a number of non-statutory organisations including the Wicklow Uplands Council with the aim of halting incidents of small scale illegal dumping/fly-tipping.
The Pure project focuses directly on combating illegal dumping/fly-tipping in the Wicklow/Dublin Uplands, incorporating a number of enforcement and preventative measures, media/PR campaigns, public awareness campaigns, community projects, and educational initiatives.
The PURE project utilises a dedicated clean-up vehicle which responds to incidents of fly-tipping/illegal dumping, PURE also work with the Councils to identify the illegal dumpers for follow up action including prosecution by the Local Authorities.
PURE Collections 2014-2018
| Description | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | TOTAL |
| Number of Complaints Received by Pure across all areas | 1072 | 1102 | 1141 | 800 | 1074 | |
| Pure Collections (No. of collections carried out following complaints and monitoring) | 777 | 908 | 935 | 1010 | 973 | 4603 |
| Tonnes Collected (No. of tonnes collected across all areas – not possible to break down to SDCC only) | 161 | 203 | 252 | 233 | 212 | |
| South Dublin area (No. of complaints received by PURE within the SDCC region) | 211 | 256 | 258 | 299 | 297 | 1321 |
| SDCC Contribution | €20,000 | €12,193 | €10,000 | €10,000 | €10,000 | €62,193 |
In conjunction with removing illegal dumping in the Dublin and Wicklow mountains PURE have a strong communications and awareness programme, including:
Website and social media – providing information on all aspects of Pure http://www.pureproject.ie/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/Pureproject.ie/
Twitter – https://twitter.com/PureProject1
The Pure Mile – an environmental project that encourages communities, groups, individuals, walking groups, cycling groups, scout groups, and all members of society to adopt rural roads and work together to improve and enhance the environment.
An extensive regional and national P.R. and media campaign to create awareness of the effects of illegal dumping
In addition the Council's Social Credits Scheme (SCS) is available to assist community groups and individuals who take ownership of their environment and improve their local area by carrying out pro-environmental actions such as community clean-ups (2,800 in 2018), collection of material by Council following clean up, maintenance of community gardens, graffiti removal and weeding of footpaths. The following materials are available to local volunteers in such groups: litter pickers, bags, hi-vis vests, shovels, brushes, gloves, paint, blub, plants etc. Groups interested in availing of the above supports can contact Environmental Awareness @ envawareness@SDUBLINCOCO.ie