Swellan lake dumping scandal

The scandalous dumping at Swellan Lake, Cavan, was highlighted at Monday night's meeting of Cavan Town Council. Cllr. Paddy O'Reilly wants a stop put to it immediately; while Mayor Andrew Boylan called on all citizens to do their civic duty and report such activity to the authorities. Cllr. O'Reilly revealed at the meeting that it was disgraceful to see the amount of beer cans, bottles, cartons and broken chairs that were being dumped along the lake. "It is a great amenity to have on the outskirts of the town and there were quite a number of people fishing there this afternoon," he said. Cllr. O'Reilly asked that the matter be addressed urgently. The Town Manager Ger Finn promised to have the matter taken on the following morning with the people in the environmental section of Cavan County Council. Cllr. Boylan said this behaviour was totally unacceptable and he called on those at this activity to desist immediately. "If anyone knows who they are, they should not be afraid to report them - you will only be doing your civic duty." The dumping was first brought to the attention of The Anglo-Celt on Monday morning by local resident Sean Walsh who has been swimming in the lake for the past 66 years. He said it was a disgrace that people were throwing bottles and cans into the lake and dumping all sorts of rubbish at this scenic location. Mr. Walsh called for it to be cleaned up immediately. He said it was a danger to swim in the lake at present because there is the fear of standing on a broken bottle or a sharp can. He said this type of behaviour is totally unacceptable in this day and age.