Illegal dumping in Laois housing estate reported to council authorities

Photo of items dumped in Higgins Park, Fairgreen, Portlaoise. Photo courtesy of a resident.

placeholder image — Photo of items dumped in Higgins Park, Fairgreen, Portlaoise. Photo courtesy of a resident.

Multiple people take action over dumping in Portlaoise residential area

Residents in a Laois housing estate are taking action on illegal dumpers who pick one particular area to throw rubbish and waste.

A carpark in Higgins Park, Fairgreen, Portlaoise on the Mountmellick road has become a dumping ground in recent times.

One resident contacted the Leinster Express / Laois Live with photographs they took.

"It appears that the car parking site becomes an area for illegal waste dumping. Some people and vehicles coming to this area and dumping their waste," the resident said.

Among the dumped items are tonne bags of garden cuttings, foam cushions, road cones and construction and demolition waste.

"The problem with waste dumping has been going for the past 10 years but not at the scale of current time, it becomes worse for the last year. Mainly, it is construction waste. It is also some domestic waste, road cones and tree branches and leaves.

"The workers who did local construction work in the Fairgreen Estate and some local residents were dumping waste. It is annoying and it is getting very bad. It is also dangerous for the kids as they are playing around concrete structures and can injure themselves.

"This car park was not kept tidy for more than 10 years. I was trying to clean it from time to time, but it is a hard job for one person, especially with current trends to dump construction and domestic waste there," the resident said.

Laois County Council's environment unit has confirmed that multiple complaints have been made about the illegal activity.

"We have received numerous reports about this complaint and it has been logged for the Litter Warden," they told the Leinster Express.

Leaving or throwing litter in a public place or visible from a public place is an offence which can be subject to an on the spot fine of €150 or a fine of up to €4,000 where court convictions are secured. A person convicted of a litter offence may also be required to pay the legal costs. The relevant legislation governing litter is the Litter Pollution Act 1997

To make complaints, contact the Environment Section at [email protected] or on our freephone confidential litter hotline 1800 32 32 30.