The plague of rural litter in Kilkenny needs to be addressed

Living in rural Kilkenny I am surrounded by scenery that is often breathtaking but there is another thing that frequently takes my breath away in the countryside and not in a good way - rural litter. 

While driving all over Kilkenny I see debris chucked carelessly from car and van windows - coffee cups, plastic bottles, drink cans, sandwich wrappers, crisp packets and cigarette butts are commonplace. They squat amongst the hedgerows and are a jarring sight for anyone who cares about our rural environment. 

I always ask myself: “What kind of person just casually throws litter from a moving vehicle rather than simply taking it home to dispose of properly? How do they think that what they are doing is acceptable?”

“Do they not care about pride of place, preserving the countryside or even the eyesore they are creating?”

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 Obviously not. 

And that is not to mention the industrial scale litterers who dump black bags full of their refuse in countryside ditches and lanes because they are too mean to pay for their bin charges. These people deliberately drive out into the countryside to get rid of their rotting rubbish without a second thought for the damage they are causing to the environment, wildlife and native ecosystems. 

Their rubbish will literally fester and rot for years and years if left where they dumped it. Plastic bags can take 15 to 20 years to decompose while plastic bottles take 450 years to break down. Some plastics are estimated to take up to a thousand years to fully decompose, so a second’s thoughtless action can have a lasting impact.  

At the peak of the littering pyramid are those people who dump really large scale items - mattresses, fridges, cookers, prams and assorted furniture in quiet places where they think they are unobserved. That many of these may travel from urban spots to conduct their rural dumping only adds insult to injury.

They will pay the price of fuel to drive to their preferred dumping location because they think they are saving money. Quite frequently they have travelled a long distance to execute their clandestine dumping. Hopefully higher fuel charges might help to halt this practice. 

To be blunt, illegal dumping is a crime but in Ireland dumpers seem to have no comprehension of that fact. Local authorities can impose penalties on people who litter and the Gardaí can also issue on-the-spot fines for litter offences. An initial on the spot fine of €150 rises to a maximum fine of €4000 if you are convicted in the District Court and yet the dumping goes on. 

What will work to get people to stop illegal littering and dumping? There needs to be another look at national education campaigns, especially in schools and colleges. Young people who are taught to care for and respect the environment are far less likely to litter as adults.

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But what about the perpetrators?

For those who are prosecuted, I believe there should be much more social shame attached to littering and dumping. It should be as socially unacceptable as vandalism for that is what it is: littering is a form of vandalism on the environment. Maybe instead of just receiving fines, people prosecuted for littering and dumping should also have to personally take part in clean up campaigns so that they appreciate the damage they cause.   

The litterers and dumpers need to appreciate that the countryside is not their personal bin - it is a place where people and animals live.

My neighbour, an artist who is frustrated by the littering in our locality, went to the trouble to create tin men from all the discarded drink cans left on the roadside with a message attached for the litter louts to take their rubbish home. They were often vandalised and that says it all! 

To report littering or illegal dumping, contact the local authority or call the 24-hour National Environmental Complaints Line on 1850 365 121.