Almost 40 per cent of the country's rivers, beaches and harbours are littered.
A new IBAL survey released today shows parts of Cork Harbour and Doolin Pier in County Clare have been labelled litter blackspots.
Kinsale Harbour in County Cork and Salthill in Galway scrubbed up well - they were declared clean to European norms.
“We know the success of the Wild Atlantic Way is placing strains on infrastructure of various kinds. Litter is a likely consequence of this and one local authorities need to manage to ensure the appeal of the Way is sustained,” contends Irish Business Against Litter spokesperson Conor Horgan.
The most common forms of litter found by the assessors were cigarette butts, sweet wrappers, plastic bottles and cans.
“We are a small island and often subject to wet and windy weather. When someone casually drops a plastic bottle or cigarette butt on the street, the likelihood of it being blown into a local river or swept into a drain to then enter the sea is very high,” continues Horgan. “This litter isn’t just unsightly, it is contributing to lasting, potentially irreparable damage to our planet. This is the new face of litter.”
Parts of Cork Harbour and Doolin Pier in County Clare have been declared Litter blackspots.
Bantry in County Cork, the River Boyne in County Louth and The River Shannon at Portumna in Galway are considered heavily littered.
