Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail)
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1432. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the amount of funding spent by local authorities on an annual basis in clearing up illegal dumping and littering throughout the country; the amount received from the various recycling and civic amenity centres throughout the country; if more is being spent on cleaning up illegal dumping than is being raised at these centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37213/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The cost of illegal dumping is not collated by my Department as it includes local authority enforcement, disposal and legal costs and also involves costs for other State agencies such as An Garda Síochána. Local authorities are requested to provide details of their expenditure under the Litter Pollution Acts on litter prevention and control on an annual basis to my Department. Such expenditure includes street and road cleaning, litter warden services and public awareness initiatives. In 2016 (latest available figures), local authorities spent approximately €96 million nationally on litter control and prevention. My role, as Minister, is to provide the legislative and policy framework under which both local authority and EPA enforcement action against illegal dumping and littering as appropriate is initiated. The Litter Pollution Acts 1997 to 2009 provide the statutory framework to combat littering; under the Acts, the primary management and enforcement response to littering is a matter for local authorities, taking account of its own local circumstances and priorities. Enforcement action in relation to illegal dumping is a matter for the relevant local authority concerned and also the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Environmental Enforcement (OEE), which supervises the environmental protection activities of local authorities.

The income derived by local authorities from Civic Amenity Sites operating in their functional areas is not collated by my Department but financial penalties for serious dumping offences available under the Waste Management Acts are substantial and range from a maximum fine of €5,000 on summary conviction to a maximum fine of €15 million on conviction on indictment and represent an opportunity to significantly defray enforcement and clean-up costs.

In terms of litter enforcement, the €150 on-the-spot fine for littering offences is one of a range of measures aimed at tackling the problem of litter in Ireland. In addition, under the Protection of the Environment Act 2003, penalties attaching to litter offences are also substantial.  This Act introduced conviction on indictment for litter offences with a maximum fine of €130,000, and set the maximum fine for summary conviction at €4,000. 

My Department has also developed an anti-dumping initiative to work in partnership with local authorities and community organisations in identifying high risk or problem areas, developing appropriate enforcement responses and carrying out clean-up operations.  In response to the hugely positive reaction from local authorities and communities since I launched this measure earlier this year, I have made further funds available to support it.  The initial allocation of €650,000 has been doubled with total funding of €1.3 million now being made available to support the clean-up of dumping black-spots and to target those who engage in this illegal practice.