Cork city has shown improvement in a recent anti-litter ranking, with the city centre now rated as clean, while the northside is labeled as 'seriously littered' in the latest league table released by Irish Businesses Against Litter (IBAL).

Naas secured the top spot out of the 40 locations inspected, while Cork city centre and Mahon are ranked as 'clean to European norms', placing 26th and 27th respectively. Fermoy, a former winner, is now in 32nd place and described as 'moderately littered', while Cork's northside is at the bottom of the list in 39th place with a 'seriously littered' status.

No litter hotspots

The report highlighted that Cork city centre has 'no litter hotspots and just two seriously littered sites', a significant improvement from the previous year. The Lord Mayor of Cork, councillor Dan Boyle, acknowledged the progress but emphasized the need for continued efforts to maintain cleanliness.

According to An Taisce judges, several city centre sites like Kennedy Quay, Penrose Quay, William St, and Grenville Place have shown improvement, although they are not yet top-ranking. On the other hand, top-ranking sites include Fitzgerald Park, Patrick St, Shalom Park, and Mardyke Walk.

Improvement in Mahon

Mahon has made significant progress, moving away from the bottom of the IBAL league with no litter blackspots and only two seriously littered sites. The area has seen extensive works resulting in better streetscapes and cleanliness at sites like Avenue de Rennes and Skehard Rd.

Challenges on the Northside

Cork's northside faced challenges with only four out of 25 sites receiving the top grade. The area has been impacted by heavily littered and dumped sites, affecting its overall ranking. Councillors have expressed disappointment over the low ranking and called for more support and attention to waste ground attracting dumping.

The issue of dumping has been linked to the privatization of waste collection, with calls for the council to take back bin collection responsibilities to improve cleanliness in the city. Despite efforts from groups like Blackpool and Shandon Street Tidy Towns, more support is needed to address littering issues.