Breaching new waste laws could see householders hit with fines

HOUSEHOLDERS could be hit with €75 fines if they are found to be in breach of a series of new waste bylaws unveiled by City Hall.

City Hall is seeking the views of businesses and residents around the new draft bylaws on the storage, segregation and presentation of household and commercial waste in Cork city.

The rules are aimed at improving waste management, including tackling illegal dumping, in the city centre.

City Hall’s head of environment Valerie O’Sullivan said: “Cork City Council spends €6.7m keeping the city clean. These draft bylaws, which are now open to public consultation, are aimed at further improving waste management in the city.”

The proposed rules include:

- Ensuring all citizens dispose of their waste by using an authorised waste contractor, by taking it to an authorised waste facility or by sharing bins by agreement.

- Maximising the use of wheelie bins and limiting the areas where bags can be presented. Only households designated by Cork City Council as entitled to use bag collection will be allowed this service.

- Defining how wheelie bins are to be presented for collection.

- Ensuring that documentation/receipts are kept to demonstrate proper disposal of waste if wheelie bins or bags are not used.

- Ensuring segregation of waste at source.

- Restricting the storage of wheelie bins on public roads or footpaths unless the householder or business in question is in receipt of written authorisation to do otherwise.

- Setting down times when wheelie bins can be presented on street for collection and setting down times for when collected bins must be removed from public road/footpath.

The bylaw notice also proposes to make provision for ‘the imposition of a fixed payment of €75 in respect of a contravention of a bylaw as an alternative to prosecution.’

The rules are open for public inspection/comment for two months at the Reception at Cork City Hall Civic Offices, and online at www.corkcity.ie.

The public consultation will run until Friday, November 9.