Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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273. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his plans to deal with the issue of dog fouling in counties Cavan and Monaghan and throughout the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23640/17]

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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282. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the amount each local authority in Dublin will receive further to his recent announcement to increase funding from the environment fund to combat the prevalence of dog fouling; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23885/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 273 and 282 together.

Although in 2016, dog fouling constituted just 1.22 per cent of all litter nationally, it is an issue of particular concern to me given its potential impacts on human health, particularly for children.

The Litter Pollution Acts 1997 to 2009 provide the statutory framework to enable local authorities to combat littering. It is an offence under section 22 of the Acts not to clean up after your dog. I believe that there are sufficient penalties in place, when enforced, to deal with the issue of dog fouling under the Litter Pollution Acts, but ultimately it is the responsibility of each individual to ensure that they play their part in preserving the environment for others through the responsible disposal of their litter, including in relation to dog fouling.

Each local authority must determine the most appropriate course of action to tackle litter pollution locally, including the most appropriate public awareness, enforcement and clean-up actions in relation to litter and dog fouling, taking account of its own particular circumstances and priorities. Authorised local authority officers and Gardaí may issue a notice or on-the-spot fine to an individual believed of committing a prescribed offence under the Acts.

As part of the targeted direct response to deal with litter, my Department operates an Anti-Litter and Anti-Graffiti Awareness Grant Scheme (ALAGS). Under this Scheme, local authorities can apply for funding for projects aimed at raising awareness of litter issues, including that of dog fouling. Local authorities are asked to focus their activities under the scheme on young people and in particular on schools and community groups with an emphasis on encouraging long term behavioural change. It is open to local authorities to utilise some of this funding to improve the situation specifically in relation to dog fouling. 

Compared to 2016, I have increased funding for the ALAGS scheme in 2017 by 28% and allocated a total of €885,000 to local authorities this year. I will announce individual local authority allocations very shortly.