Towns will vie for anti-litter awards

An all-Ireland anti-litter league is to be set up to compile and publish a league table of towns in 29 counties according to litter rating.

Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) yesterday said the initiative would was designed to culminate with the All-Ireland GAA finals in 2002. The scheme will involve towns from 29 counties being assessed at regular intervals by An Taisce, acting as an independent monitoring body.

Each town will be awarded a litter rating of up to 100 points, with 85 points deemed "litter-free" status. Points will be accumulated throughout the year. Towns will be assessed for chewing gum, graffiti, fly-posting, and weeds, as well as wrappings. Bonus points will be given for road surfaces and schemes which impose litter fines.

At the launch of the league at Croke Park yesterday, Dr Tom Cavanagh of IBAL said he didn't see the league as a "name and shame" campaign but more a "novel means of energising local authorities" into getting to grips with litter. It would engender a spirit of inter-county rivalry.

"The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, has tasked local authorities with cleaning up these towns - the league will serve as a useful instrument in monitoring their progress," he said.

The most recent statistics show Ireland with a litter rating of 58, behind the UK and well behind European countries, many of whose cities have attained litter-free status.

"We are among the dirtiest societies in Europe, and the consequences for business are substantial," said Dr Cavanagh.

Ladbrokes have installed Kilkenny as 10/1 favourite to win the league, with NewcastleWest, Omagh and Letterkenny at 12/1.