Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 124: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the recent litter study undertaken by environmental scientists at Trinity College, Dublin, which found that at any one time there were 1,148 pieces of litter per kilometre stretch of a typical rural road; the steps he intends to take to deal with this unacceptable situation; if his attention has further been drawn to the fact that drink cans and plastic bottles were the greatest problem; if he will consider the imposition of a levy on these items to discourage their use; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3907/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Primary responsibility for developing and implementing responses to the litter problem rests appropriately with local authorities. My Department does, however, provide financial support for a programme of anti-litter initiatives to support local authority action against litter including: the national spring clean campaign; the Irish business against litter, IBAL, national litter league; and the development of the national litter pollution monitoring system.

Information available under the national litter pollution monitoring system, based on local authority surveys to determine the scale and nature of litter pollution in their functional areas, shows that drink cans and bottles, both plastic and glass, constitute a relatively minor proportion of litter pollution. In these circumstances, I believe that existing anti-litter action by local authorities, together with my Department's support of the above initiatives, provide an effective and appropriate basis for tackling litter pollution nationally, including litter problems associated with these products.