Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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121.To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his views on two studies used to evaluate national litter levels (details supplied) which have yielded differing conclusions; the analysis of these his Department considers to be the authoritative measure of litter levels in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35262/24]

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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122.To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his views on the results of a litter survey frequently referenced by himself, which ranks certain areas as moderately littered according to European norms (details supplied); the specific European norms the survey refers to; if there are any data or recommendations available to the worst affected areas to help reduce litter levels; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35263/24]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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My Department provides annual funding to Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) towards the cost of their annual Irish Business Against Litter Campaign. The surveys which are conducted as part of this campaign are carried out by An Taisce on behalf of IBAL. For specific queries on the surveys themselves I would suggest the Deputy contacts IBAL directly.

I understand the An Taisce methodology involves attributing a cleanliness rating to each town or city based on a number of sites assessed. In simple terms, if 80% of sites in a town are virtually free of litter, the town is deemed ‘Clean to European Norms’. The reference to European Norms is based on specific research conducted by An Taisce on behalf of IBAL into cleanliness levels in cities across the EU.

Under the Litter Pollution Act 1997, the primary responsibility for management and enforcement responses to litter pollution lies with local authorities. It is a matter for each local authority to determine the most appropriate public awareness, enforcement, and clean-up actions in relation to litter taking account of local circumstances and priorities.

My Department provides financial support to local authority efforts to tackle litter through the Anti-Litter & Anti-Graffiti Awareness Grant Scheme. In 2023 €750,000 was provided under this Scheme and a similar amount is being made available in 2024.

In addition to the funding provided to IBAL, funding is also provided annually in support of a number of other important anti-litter initiatives such as the National Spring Clean, Picker Pals and the PURE Project.