COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, September 11, 2023

QUESTION NO. 23

QUESTION: Councillor L.Guéret

To ask the Chief Executive if South Dublin County Council Staff are dealing with reports from Communities in respect of the increasing use of Nitrous Oxide; will he appreciate the concerns of local Communities in respect of this matter and will he make a Statement ?

REPLY:

The Council's Public Realm Section on request from the elected members implemented a programme to monitor the reporting of nitrous oxide cannister finds and this programme ran for a 12 month period from August 2021 to August 2022.  The information obtained from this programme clearly showed that these cannisters were being used and discarded in all parts of the county and could be found in all locations including along main roads and footpaths, in housing estates and on open spaces, and in particular in public parks.  The monitoring programme also showed that over the 12 month period the level of usage and discarding of cannisters increased noticeably and it also changed in nature during that period, initially the finds reported were of multiple 'silver bullets' at a location however in the later months of the programme the cannisters found were the larger type which contain 50 to 60 times the volume of one 'silver bullet'.  The Council's Public Realm Section continues to receive reports of these finds and responds and removes the cannisters as necessary.

The issue of nitrous oxide abuse presents a particular problem in that it has many legitimate uses such as in the catering industry and in dentistry and to be in possession of it for a legitimate purpose is not an offence, and for this reason it is not controlled by the Misuse of Drugs Act.  It is an offence to possess it for the purpose of consumption or inhaling and it is also an offence to supply it for this reason.  There is no provision within current legislation in this area for an offence of personal possession of this substance.