CCTV cameras to be used to tackle illegal dumping

Offaly County Council are set to re-introduce CCTV cameras at illegal dumping blackspots.

The Offaly Independent received a number of photos this week showing illegal dumping in the vicinity of Boland's Lock along the Grand Canal close to Tullamore, a popular location for walkers and cyclists.

Cllr Tommy McKeigue, the chairman of Tullamore Tidy Towns, says that it is just one of a number of isolated areas in the Tullamore area where incidents of illegal dumping are on the rise.

The Fine Gael man said that over the last six months the council has noticed a marked increase in the amount of illegal dumping at sites such as Chancery Lane and the Clontarf Road. The problem has become so bad that the council is set to start using mobile CCTV cameras at dumping black spots in a bid to deter dumpers.

Cllr McKeigue said that the council had used CCTV cameras in the past and they had proved very successful in reducing the number of incidents of illegal dumping. However, after a camera had been taken from Chancery Lane, the council stopped using them.

'If we can get someone's car registration [when they are dumping] we have some chance, but it's not simple. I am also calling for more public spirit. Waste disposal is not that expensive, especially if you segregate your waste and there is now the third bin,' Cllr McKeigue said.

At the minute council workers are having to remove dumped waste from some accident blackspots on a weekly basis, which Cllr McKeigue says costs more than renting CCTV cameras.

He also noted that while council staff sort through the dumped waste for evidence, most dumpers have the presence of mind to remove anything incriminating. He also said that funding needs to be provided for the employment of more litter wardens as illegal dumping is on the rise.

'Nearly every side road or bog road when you walk along them have black bags dumped there,' he said.