Council says it can't clear leaves from Kildare's housing estates

Kildare County Council can’t clear leaves from housing estates.

KCC was asked to deploy road sweeper trucks to do the work in the Naas area by Cllr Bill Clear, who said the accumulation of leaves can cause people to fall, block drains and “create an untidy appearance.“

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However, the council responded that road sweeper trucks are not capable of collecting all fallen leaves, particularly those located on footpaths, grass verges, or within private property boundaries. 

It added: “With over 150 housing estates in the district, the cost and resources required to carry out a comprehensive sweep of each estate would be considerable.”

A Naas Municipal District was told of KCC staff shortages and staff are “prioritising urgent maintenance tasks and responding to resident queries.”

KCC also said any clean-up effort “would only provide temporary relief, with further accumulation likely.”

Instead residents are encouraged to remove leaves from footpaths and drains outside their homes and bagged leaves can be collected by KCC staff “upon request to ensure proper disposal.”

KCC said it will continue to monitor key areas and “deploy a sweeper where possible, focusing on locations with the greatest need.”