Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 21 February 2018
172. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of prosecutions and convictions, respectively, for illegal dumping and on-the-spot fines in Dublin city since 2012, by local area district; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8917/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra173. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of prosecutions and convictions, respectively, for illegal dumping since 2012, by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8918/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra174. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the amount spent in Dublin city on the removal of illegal waste in each year since 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8919/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 172 to 174, inclusive, together.
Enforcement actions against illegal waste activity are a matter for the Local Authorities and the Office of Environmental Enforcement (OEE) within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department does not compile statistics in relation to prosecutions taken or fines imposed. Information is available through the Local Government Management Agency’s series of service indicators annual reports available from the publications section of the LGMA’s website http://www.lgma.ie/en/publication-category/service-indicator-reports-2004-2010 and the enforcement section of the EPA’s website http://www.epa.ie/enforcement/prosecute/. The cost of illegal dumping is not collated by my Department as it includes local authority enforcement, disposal and legal costs and also involves costs for other State agencies such as An Garda Síochána.
Illegal dumping is first and foremost a matter of individual responsibility and compliance with the law. While enforcement action in this area is a matter in the first instance for local authorities, the Department encourages a multi-facetted approach to tackling the problem, incorporating enforcement, public awareness and education and, as such, the Department provides funding to support the activities of the Waste Enforcement Regional Lead Authorities (WERLAs) of approximately €1 million per annum and of the network of local authority waste enforcement officers of approximately €7.4 million per annum. Dublin City Council receives an annual grant of €982,000 in this regard.
In addition, the Department has developed an Anti-Dumping Initiative to work in partnership with local authorities and community organisations in identifying high risk or problem areas, developing appropriate enforcement responses and carrying out clean-up operations. The 2017 Anti-Dumping Initiative saw funding of €1.26 million provided by the Department which supported 229 projects across the country. This year, I am increasing the allocation to €2 million to build on the momentum that has now been created and to provide for an increased focus on identifying and prosecuting illegal dumpers.
