Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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767. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of fines given to persons who did not remove dog fouling by county. [23663/19]

Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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768. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the amount spent on awareness, warnings and so on to prevent dog fouling by county. [23664/19]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 767 and 768 together.

The Litter Pollution Acts, 1997 to 2009, provide the statutory framework to combat littering and include provisions relating to dog fouling. Under the Acts, the primary management and enforcement response to littering (including dog fouling) rests with Local Authorities. It is a matter for each Local Authority to determine the most appropriate course of action to tackle litter pollution locally within the legislation provided. This includes the most appropriate public awareness, enforcement and clean-up actions in relation to litter and dog fouling, taking account of local circumstances and priorities.

My Department does not collate statistics on the number of fines issued by Local Authorities in relation to specific litter offences, such as dog fouling offences. However, my Department does publish data on the revenue generated from Local Authority on-the-spot litter fines and Courts' fines. The data is available at:

With regard to litter awareness, my Department has, since 1997, co-funded the Local Authority Anti-Litter and Anti-Graffiti Awareness Grant Scheme (ALAGS). Local Authorities are responsible for selecting suitable ALAGS projects for funding and deciding on individual grant allocations. Where possible, the focus is on voluntary initiatives by community and environmental groups, and also on involving schools and young people in anti-litter and anti-graffiti action. Typically, eligible projects include local media campaigns, clean-ups, primary/secondary school competitions, exhibitions, and the production of videos, posters and leaflets.

ALAGS funding increased by 28% in 2017 to €884,000 and this level was maintained in 2018. In previous years Local Authorities have been requested to consider, where practical under the scheme, expending a portion of their grant on dog fouling awareness projects.