'Portlaoise has come on in leaps and bounds' Tidy Towns chairman
The chairperson of Portlaoise Tidy Towns has welcomed the rise in the town's litter ratings, but said the work is never finished to keep the Laois capital town clean and tidy.
Portlaoise jeweller Gerry Browne commented as the latest Irish Businesses Against Litter (IBAL) survey found that Portlaoise has improved from 26th to 20th position, out of 40 Irish cities and towns, judged by An Taisce.
It is still a long way from the lofty number one position that Portlaoise was awarded in September 2021 as Ireland's Cleanest Town, falling to second place in January 2022, and dramatically dropped to 26th last June.
"It is an ongoing thing, it yo-yos up and down. Generally people who come to the town remark on how clean it is," he said.
The judges praised Portlaoise Main Street, a Dunnes Stores site and Hinds Square, but said one vacant site on Harpurs Lane remains "heavily littered".
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"There is very little that we as a group can do about a building site down a side street. It would be the same in every town in Ireland.
"The people of the town and people coming in appreciate that. We never get on top of it, but you keep nibbling.
"We do have great volunteers, we have come a long way. Anybody who came to Portlaoise five years ago would see we have come on in leaps and bounds, in every area, let alone litter," Gerry Browne said.