Ireland must change the “strange relationship with waste” it's developed in recent years, a Green Party councillor in Dublin has said.

On Newstalk Breakfast today, Cllr Claire Byrne said many people in the country leave stuff behind them around public amenities expecting someone else to pick it up afterward.

She is calling for a summer waste management plan to be implemented in Dublin this issue to tackle the scourge of littering.

Cllr Byrne said people need to be more responsible when it comes to littering.

“I think culturally, we do have a very strange relationship with waste,” she said.

“We seem to think that it’s OK to just throw things on the ground, or if we go to a park or a beach during the summer we can just leave our stuff behind and someone will pick it up after us.

“I think we need to take a close look at that and start taking more personal responsibility for our waste.”

'Sweeping accusations'

Cllr Byrne said she is not making “sweeping accusations against the nation”.

“This is one of the biggest problems around the world, generally, that we are creating more waste,” she said.

“Fifteen years ago, you’d go for a walk and wouldn’t even dream of getting a takeaway coffee when doing that.

“When we were younger, if you went to the park or beach, you’d bring a packaged lunch.

“But nowadays, you’re likely to go and purchase something in a takeaway container; we’re creating more waste all the time but we’re not providing the facilities to deal with it.”

Swans looking for food among the litter and rubbish pollution at the river at the Grand Canal Docks in Dublin, 07-12-2020. Image: Sasko Lazarov/RollingNews

She called on Dublin City Council to step up.

“We are calling for a summer management plan, particularly around the waterways,” said Cllr Byrne.

“Extra bins are usually put in place, but I do think we need more cleansing staff as well.

“Ultimately, I think we need people, if they can, to bring as much waste home with them and to dispose of it properly – we need to be recycling as much as we should be.”

Initiatives

Cllr Byrne said there are things the local authority is getting right.

“There is a lot of attention and effort going into the north-east inner city at the moment,” she said.

“There’s lots of trial initiatives happening there, particularly around illegal dumping – another problem we have.

“But I’d like to see people have more pride of place.”

Dublin City Council currently collects up to 50 tonnes of illegally dumped waste every month.

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Main image: Rubbish washed into River Liffey. Image: noel bennett / Alamy Stock Photo