Tackling the scourge of illegal dumping

Cavan County Council's Bulky Goods Collection Day, the annual clean up of heavy items, takes place on August 15.

Run as par of its Anti-Dumping Initiative the Bulky Goods Collection Day will be held at the Corranure Civic Amenity site from 8am until 12:30pm. The service is for domestic householders.

A collection fee of €5 per van, or car and trailer, will apply on the day.

Paddy Connaughton, Director of Service, Roads & Infrastructure, Environment, Water and Waste Management said the upcoming collection servers many functions: “Organised under Cavan County Council’s Anti-Dumping Initiative, this bulky waste collection day at Corranure Civic Amenity Centre is an excellent opportunity for householders in County Cavan to dispose of old furniture in an affordable, safe and responsible manner. This follows on from our successful Mattress Amnesty Collection also held at Corranure Civic Amenity Centre on 18th July, where over 170 customers availed of this service with 500 mattresses collected on the day.”

Mr Connaughton encouraged the public to participate in the initiative: “Anyone who has large household waste which they no longer need or want to avail of this service, and to avoid engaging the services of unauthorised 'Man in a Van' waste collectors. While unauthorised waste collectors offer low cost waste collection services, they do not dispose of your waste in an environmentally safe or responsible manner. Often the waste collected by these individuals ends up callously dumped across our countryside.”

The illegal collection and disposal of waste poses a serious risk to the environment, places a significant burden on the Councils resources with potential prosecution to the original waste owner.

It is an offence under the Waste Management Act 1996 as amended to give your waste to an unauthorised waste collector. Anyone found guilty of giving their waste to an unauthorised waste collector can be prosecuted in the District Court. Fines of up to €5,000 can be imposed upon conviction. Offenders may also be responsible for the Council's legal fees and the clean up costs incurred by the Council for the removal and disposal of waste.

Authorised waste collectors will have a waste collection permit and they will have the number of their permit displayed and clearly visible on their vehicles and on any written correspondence/receipts. Permits are administered by the National Waste Collection Permit Office (NWCPO). Before engaging a waste collector, you should check the NWCPO website to ensure they hold a valid permit on www.nwcpo.ie.

The council's Director of Service asked for public support in tackling the problem of illegal dumping: “If the public suspect that an illegal waste collector is operating in their area, they can contact the Waste Management Section on 049 4378300 or by email at waste@cavancoco.ie. I also hope that these Bulky Waste Collection Days will encourage new households to visit our Civic Amenity Centres. This will give them a chance to see the full rage of options that are available to them for recycling other forms of household waste,” Mr Connaughton concluded.