Clean Sweep: Kilkenny tops Litter League yet again as PPE and coffee cups become scourge

Kilkenny has come out tops in the latest litter league once again.

It is the fifth time Kilkenny has been named top of the Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) league table.

However, coffee cups and PPE equipment made up the majority of the litter the judges found on their travels around Ireland.

Praising Kilkenny in its report, An Taisce commented: “There is surely a lesson in this result for other towns – while the majority of towns have deteriorated during Covid, Kilkenny has been maintained in pristine condition.

“The High Street, River Nore Walk and grounds of Kilkenny Castle were all “excellent with regard to not just litter, but overall presentation,” the report added.

Kilkenny pipped Killarney, Ennis and Tullamore to the top prize.

Despite the exceptional show by Kilkenny, the latest IBAL survey showed a “decline in cleanliness” across the country, with a number of towns surveyed slipping from clean to littered.

IBAL spokesperson Conor Horgan. “Covid is clearly a factor here, but we should never accept litter as inevitable. It comes down to people disposing of their waste without regard for their surroundings or their fellow citizens and it is entirely unnecessary.”

Ballymun once again finished bottom of the table and was deemed a litter blackspot along with Dublin North Inner City.

Tallaght, Mahon in Cork, Mullingar, Navan and Limerick City South were all adjudged to be littered.

The survey found that Coffee cups were among the most prevalent litter types found, while there was another rise in glass bottles and cans.

The IBAL survey also found an increase in PPE-related litter, primarily masks in the second half of 2020.