Peter Cleere (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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255. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the cost to both Kilkenny County Council and Carlow County Council for the collection and management of illegal dumping in each year from 2020 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15303/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Waste Management Act, the primary responsibility for management and enforcement responses to illegal dumping lies with the local authorities. It is a matter for each local authority to determine the most appropriate awareness, enforcement, clean-up and disposal actions in relation to illegal dumping, taking account of local circumstances and priorities. As such my Department does not hold information on the amounts individual local authorities spend on managing illegally dumped waste on an annual basis. Questions in relation to expenditure relating to illegal dumping in each county should be directed to the relevant local authority.

However, my Department provides significant support to the local authority sector in their efforts to deal with incidences of illegal dumping. Almost €20.5m has been provided to the sector under the Anti-Dumping Initiative (ADI) since it was first introduced in 2017 in order to encourage a collaborative approach between local authorities, community groups and other State Agencies to tackling the problem. Innovative projects, which recognise waste as a resource that can be re-purposed for use in a Circular Economy are particularly encouraged under the initiative. In 2024, €2.8m was provided in support of the ADI, while a further €3m has been allocated in support of the initiative in 2025.Full details of the amounts provided to individual local authorities by my Department under the ADI for each of the years 2017 - 2023 (2024 data will be added shortly), including details of the specific projects supported by county are available at the following link - www.gov.ie/en/publication/e27ac-anti-dumping-initiative/.

My Department also continues to invest heavily in the local authority waste enforcement network, through the Waste Enforcement Measures Grant Scheme, with the intention of maintaining a visible presence of waste enforcement personnel on the ground across the State. In 2024, €7.58m was provided to local authorities under the scheme, with a further €7.7m allocated for 2025.