Dumping continues to be a problem in Longford during Covid-19 pandemic

Dumping remains an issue in Longford during the Covid-19 restrictions.

This photo of a clothes bank in a carpark in Longford town was sent in by a member of the Longford Tidy Towns committee and shows large piles of clothes dumped beside the bank, along with several items of rubbish.

Similar scenes can be seen at bottle banks around the county.

Gary Brady of the environmental section in Longford County Council says some people seem to think that because bottle banks are provided, this gives them a green light to dispose of various types of waste there.

“An easy rule of thumb is would you drop it outside your own door? If not, bring it home and bin it,” he said.

A statutory litter fine is currently €150, after which you have 21 days to pay before a file is prepared for court.

The people who get litter fines could consider themselves lucky - the council could also bring them straight to court, where they can be fined up to €4,000 and ordered to pay hefty costs.

Read also: Man jailed for ‘one of the worst dumping cases’ Longford judge has seen