Have your say on how Dublin City Council can tackle city's litter problem
Whether it’s cigarette butts, illegal dumping, or chewing gum glued to the ground, litter has been a consistent issue in Dublin city.
However, now the public can have their say about how to tackle this filthy problem as Lord Mayor Ray McAdam is asking for the people of Dublin to share their views. As part of the Draft Litter Management Plan, he’s asking for essential input from residents and groups on the best ways Dublin City Council can make the streets cleaner.
“We want to hear from people right across the city how we can address litter problems in our capital,” the Lord Mayor said. "Everyone has a role to play in this. Residents, business and community groups can all make a submission to Dublin City Council on what they want to see done to make Dublin a cleaner, more sustainable city.
Recent years have seen a real focus on cleaning up the city, as the council has already expanded its 24 -hour street cleaning operation and recruited new staff as part of its ongoing effort to make the capital cleaner. With a Three Pillar Strategy to deliver a cleaner Dublin City dozens of cleaning staff have been hired over the past 12 months and there’s approximately 200 staff members rostered each day and night, seven days a week.
Increased staff numbers have also allowed for the creation of a city-wide rapid response team that can be deployed at short notice for any incident across the city. With the establishment of city-wide wash teams, the department washes between 20 and 30km of public footpaths and pedestrianised roads each week.
Areas in the city centre with high levels of foot traffic are also washed with specialised cleaning equipment up to four times per week. These include Henry St, Mary St, O’Connell St, and Grafton St.
The installation of waste compactors Fownes Street Upper and St. Stephens Green also helps to remove up to 1,000 plastic bags from the streets as the council’s ‘No More Rubbish Excuses’ hammered home a message that littering is unacceptable in Dublin city. These measures have made a big difference, but the Lord Mayor believes there’s more that can be done and is encouraging people to put forward their submissions on how to take things to the next level in terms of cleanliness. “It is vital that we all work together to help shape a cleaner Dublin. We must take stronger steps to address the litter problem in our city centre,” he said.
“The closing date to make a submission is Friday 1 May, and I encourage people right across the city centre to have their say and help deliver a cleaner capital.” The draft plan can be viewed here and submissions can be emailed to LMP2026@dublincity.ie.
This content is funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme