THE COMMUNITY in Derrybeg has been left frustrated again over dumping at the local Bring Bank. Boxes full of rubbish were left beside the banks despite Donegal County Council confirming that the Litter Warden is monitoring the site on a weekly basis because of the ongoing problem.
A spokesperson for the Council said: “The Mobile Litter Unit and the Litter Warden monitor and clean the site on a regular basis each week. As part of Donegal County Councils waste enforcement activities covert cameras are utilised at glass and can recycling facilities, as required, to identify those dumping illegally.”
Cllr Micheal McGiolla Easbaig (Ind) said dumping at the site is ongoing all year round and said it is not strangers coming into the community who are the culprits. He said there are CCTV cameras on the site that are not working which is adding to the problem.
Cllr McGiolla Easbaig said the frustration lies with the fact that a plan for the Bring Bank has been developed but there has been no progress to date. The council entered discussions with the landowner and they hope to put in a concrete base to make it easier to maintain as well as installing new CCTV cameras.
“The frustration is about the length of time this is taking. I had hoped this would have been done way back last Easter,” said Cllr McGiolla Easbaig. Fresh commitments have now been given for this work to be carried out by October.
“There is a wider issue of waste management and I have been saying consistently that the public wants more than just cans and bottles at Bring Banks. In any other first world country on every road end there is a place for cans and bottles, paper and plastics and a place for organics. It’s not a situation where you have to drive 30 miles. Our objective for recycling is for us to be kind to the environment how are we being kind to the environment by forcing people to drive long distances.”
Cllr McGiolla Easbaig said poverty in rural Donegal is also playing a part with people having to decide between buying bin tags or putting food on the table and paying their mortgage. He added that he strongly believes waste collection should be monitored by the state and not by private companies and that we should adopt similar policies to Scandinavian countries.
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