Councils waiting 18 months for rules to use CCTV to detect illegal dumping - Lowry

‘Illegal dumping continues to be an enormous problem across Tipperary and the country’, Deputy Lowry said when addressing the Tanaiste during Promised Legislation in the Dail on Thursday.

He highlighted the fact that the Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022 became law in July 2022, providing for the GDPR-compliant use of CCTV for waste-enforcement purposes by Local Authorities. 

‘This Act requires the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) to draw up a Code of Practice for the use of CCTV by Local Authorities to deter and detect dumping and to submit this to the Minster of Environment for his approval

‘Yet, almost a year and a half after the Act became law there is still no sign of the required Code of Practice. This is preventing Local Authorities from using CCTV for this purpose.

‘Why, after 18 months, has the Local Government Management Agency failed in its duty and, as a result, prevented Local Authorities from tackling this unsanitary and unsightly problem?

‘Can the Tanaiste inform the House when we can expect the LGMA to produce this crucial CCTV Code of Practice?’ he asked.

Tanaiste Micheal Martin replied that this ongoing situation is unacceptable and would be followed up. ‘People need to implement laws when they are passed. We want to crack down on illegal dumping and, in my view, CCTV’s should be used for that purpose,’ he said.