Chairperson of Keep Kilkenny Beautiful 'extremely proud' of IBAL litter survey findings

Chairperson of Keep Kilkenny Beautiful, Maria Dollard, claims she's 'incredibly proud' following Kilkenny's top five finish in the latest IBAL litter rankings, deemed clean, but slipping slightly from joint second last year to fourth place.

"The huge efforts of volunteers who have worked very hard on a weekly basis on a targeted litter picking programme, to ensure that previous blackspots have been particularly addressed and targeted for special attention," Cllr Dollard said.

"We are incredibly proud of all our volunteers who are drawn from every sector of the community, including International Protection refugees and who have planned, coordinated and carried out the programme of litter picking over the last 12 months," she commented.

"Working in partnership with Kilkenny County Council we intend to improve that place over the next 12 months. We know what needs to be done, we will get the work done and enjoy the all important fun we all have in the process of Keeping Kilkenny Beautiful," Ms Dollard concluded.

The final litter survey of 2023 by business group Irish Business Against Litter shows Kilkenny retaining its top five position in the ranking of 40 towns and cities nationwide. IBAL says the impending Deposit Return Scheme will improve cleanliness levels further but is calling for action on coffee cups.

The An Taisce report for Kilkenny said it was 'as always a very strong performance by Kilkenny with eight out of the ten sites surveyed getting the top litter grade and no heavily littered sites'.

Top-ranking sites included bottle bank at St Canice’s carpark, an area that has previously been criticised by adjudicators in tidiness competitions. Other highly-praised sites included St Kieran’s Street, The Mall, High Street and Kilkenny Castle Park.

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