Camper van regulations needed at busy Louth tourist hotspots – ‘It seems like everybody has one’

By Olivia Ryan, The Drogheda Independent

It’s an idyllic way to travel and explore the outdoors, but one Louth councillor has highlighted concerns around the impact of camper vans descending on specific locations.

Cllr. Marianne Butler told the September meeting of Dundalk Municipal District that she was aware of the appeal of camper vans.

"We had a fairly decent summer this year, and it seems like everyone has a camper van at this stage, except me! For the most part, there are no problems when they park up.”

But, she added that when a large number of camper vans arrive at one location “it does become an issue.”

"One becomes two, three and more, and all of a sudden you have ten all in one scenic location,” said Cllr. Butler.

She added problems then arise with rubbish gathering and noise late at night, all of which can impact on local residents and local habitats.

"In one particular case a lot of camper vans settled on the foreshore, which is council property, and I am wondering how can we regulate that?”

She added: “I am still of the view that we should provide spaces for them but there are also places where they just should not be, especially when they are causing an issue.”

"Is it possible in these cases to introduce prohibition orders?” said Cllr. Butler.

Thomas McEvoy, Deputy Chief Executive at Louth County Council said the issues around camper vans had come up in preparation for the county’s new tourism strategy.

He said the need for designated areas for camper vans was “coming out strongly” in the new strategy, which the council expects to be published shortly.

"It is something we will look at and see what we can do,” said Mr. McEvoy.

He added that in terms of a Prohibition Order, the council would have to look at the legislation and how it could apply.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Service