Calls for action over illegal dumps in the Curragh as clean-ups cost taxpayer €185k

'The Curragh is one of Ireland’s natural treasures, a beautiful amenity, used by farmers, sports institutions and ordinary Kildare people'

Independent TD for Kildare South, Patricia Ryan, is calling for action to be taken on the illegal encampments on the Curragh Plains, after €185,000 was spent this year on the removal of illegally dumped waste along the plains. 

The Curragh is 5,000 acres of land that is well known for horse breeding and training, located on the edge of Kildare town beside the Japanese gardens that is home to numerous bird species, and is known for its rare greenery that grows there.  

The TD described her astonishment, after asking the Tánaiste, Míchéal Martin, in a Parliamentary Question, how much taxpayer money it costs to deal with, remove, and clean up after the illegal dumpings. 

Patricia said, "Imagine my shock when I received the responses, to find that this year alone, in 2024, a shocking €185,945 was spent to clear this rubbish from the Curragh, to a privately contracted firm. This is an absolutely astonishing sum, and with the numbers of these reported illegal encampments increasing virtually year on year, the cost of the clean-up can only be set to increase. So far in 2024 alone a total of 33 have been reported to the Department.

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The deputy continued: "The Curragh is one of Ireland’s natural treasures, a beautiful amenity, used by farmers, sports institutions and ordinary Kildare people. It must be protected for everyone to enjoy, and not permit it to be destroyed. Illegal encampments and fly tipping not only cause public eyesores, they pose a serious and unacceptable environmental risk to the flora and fauna of the Curragh – full enforcement and accountability is essential to preserve the wild beauty of it. It is of no use for illegal encampments to be removed from one location only to move to another location on the Curragh, leaving carnage in their wake each time."

The Independent TD believes that those committing these distasteful acts should be held accountable, and the high cost spent on removal could be spent on better things that would improve the community, stating that she has and always will "Continue to advocate for the protection of the Curragh Plains for all who use it and for those who live on and around it."