Litter pollution is a major threat to the quality of our local environment. It is very visible and is objectionable affront to the kind of environment people want to live in.

The organisation Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) continues to challenge towns and Councils throughout Ireland to achieve litter free status. This is an All-Ireland competition and An Taisce will be visiting each of the towns selected to assess how they measure up to the 85% mark required to be declared litter free.

An Taisce carry out at least three Litter Surveys per annum, and assess streets, roads, and industrial areas and of course residential estates. The results of the assessment is sent to Kildare County Council and published in both the national daily and local newspapers. The local authority are the principle public body with responsibility for tackling the litter problem,

To report a littering offence Free phone the Litter Warden at 1800 243 143

Typical survey sites would be
The Town Centre, Main Street, Shopping Centres, Public Car Parks, Bus & Train Stations, Residential Areas, Industrial Estates, Public Amenity Areas, River Walks, Tourist Areas, Main Approach Roads.

Definition of Litter (Typical examples of litter)
Cigarette Butts, Sweet Papers, Chewing Gum, Bottles & Cans, Plastic Bags & Wrapping, Dog Fouling, Fast Food Wrappers, ATM Receipts, Bus & Train Tickets, Fly – posting, Unattended Grass Areas, Unattended Weeds, Overflowing Litter Bins, Graffiti.

IBAL / An Taisce's marking system:
An Taisce calculate a “cleanliness’ rating” based on the following scale:
Total absence of litter: Grade “A” scores 3 Points
Scattered small amounts of litter: Grade “B” scores 2 Points
Small accumulations of litter: Grade “C” scores 1 point
Significant accumulation of litter: Grade “D” scores 0 points.