The final litter survey of 2022 by business group Irish Business Against Litter shows Ennis remains among the cleanest towns in the country, in 5th spot in the ranking of 40 towns and cities nationwide.
Three quarters of Ireland’s cities and towns were deemed ‘clean’ in 2022, compared to just over half in the previous year. Naas was again top of the rankings.
An Taisce conducts the surveys on behalf of IBAL. Its report for Ennis stated: “A very strong performance by a former IBAL Winner – the location of the IBAL sculpture is the impeccably presented and maintained at Abbey Street Car Park. Other top-ranking sites included the three approach roads and O’Connell Street, Market Place / Market Street Lower and Monastery Park. Gort Road Business Park and Ennis Bus / Train Station were very much deserving of the top litter grade this time around – a big improvement compared to a few years ago.”
Cleanliness levels nationwide improved by 6% in 2022, with Naas pipping Kilkenny and Maynooth in the rankings. For the third year in succession, Waterford was the cleanest city, ahead of Galway. Urban areas improved by 12%, yet they continue to occupy the lower positions in the IBAL rankings.
“The results reflect a pattern of improvement since the peak of the Covid pandemic, when litter levels soared, especially in cities,” said IBAL’s Conor Horgan. “In particular we are seeing local authorities concentrate their efforts on ridding areas of heavily littered sites. We have no reason to believe this improvement will not be sustained. Cleanliness is a virtuous circle: clean streets beget clean streets, inspiring a pride and consciousness of the environment among people.”
Plastic bottle and cans continue to be a major source of litter, second only to sweet wrappers and present in one in three of the 500-plus sites surveyed. IBAL believes the findings bolster the case for a deposit return scheme, which is due to be introduced this year, and which will see consumers pay a deposit which they can reclaim on returning their containers to a retailer or other collection point.
“Based on this data the scheme is sorely needed and stands to rid our streets of a significant amount of litter. The same applies to the proposed coffee cup levy,” commented Conor Horgan. While there was a fall in the prevalence of coffee cups, they were still found in 25% of sites surveyed.
The survey showed cigarette butts remain a persistent form of litter. “We welcome the announcement that cigarette manufacturers will now be contributing to the cost of clean-up, but we really need to see preventative measures such as widespread butt disposal facilities alongside innovative packaging which can store butts,” said Conor Horgan.
Set up in 1996, Irish Business Against Litter is an alliance of companies sharing a belief that continued economic prosperity – notably in the areas of tourism, food and direct foreign investment – is contingent on a clean, litter-free environment.
As part of the IBAL Anti-Litter League, An Taisce monitors towns independently and in accordance with international grading standards.