No stopping Moynalty in Anti-Litter League

Moynalty Tidy Towns Committee has been celebrating its overall win in the annual Meath County Council Anti-Litter League Competition, the results of which were announced last week. A total of 79 groups competed in this year's event over a six-week period and, as always, the competition was very tough. Cllr William Carey, chairman of Meath County Council, thanked all of the volunteers involved at the awards evening, held at the Solstice Arts Centre. He commented on the importance of a clean environment in Meath, and elsewhere, as communities face new challenges. "Litter not only looks ugly, but it damages our enjoyment of our lives, it impacts negatively on tourism, on economic development, jobs, resources and security," he said. It wasn't, however, all doom and gloom as Cllr Carey pointed out that Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) has reported a significant improvement in litter in towns and villages across the county over the past seven years. "This is in no small part due to local people maintaining their dedication to their local communities over a long period of time," he added. There was a new schools category in the Anti-Litter League this year, with St Oliver Post-Primary School, Oldcastle; St Patrick's Classical School, Navan, and Eureka Secondary School, Kells, winning the top prizes in this category. The schools awards were sponsored by ERP Ireland, whose operations manager, Feargal Murray, was on hand to present the prizes. Brendan McGrath, director of services with Meath County Council, paid tribute to the work of community groups. He also reiterated the commitment of the council to bring individuals and operators who flout the litter legislation to justice. "Detection figures for litter offences are on the increase, due to covert CCTV and increased community vigilance. People will not accept this type of behaviour from others, and nor should they have to. The environment section will confidentially deal with any concern raised by members of the public in relation to littering or illegal dumping," he said. The Anti-Litter League takes place in March and April each year. Details of the league for 2011 will be available from Meath County Council's Pride of Place section or environment section next January. The results of the Anti-Litter League 2010 are as follows: Secondary Schools - 1, St Oliver Post-Primary, Oldcastle; 2, St Patrick's Classical School, Navan. Category A Small Villages - 1, Moynalty; 2, Killyon, Hill of Down; 3, Fordstown. Category B Medium Villages/Small Towns - 1, Castletown; 2, Broomfield and District; 3, Rathmolyon. Category C Large Towns - 1, Dunboyne; 2, Ashbourne; 3, Oldcastle. Category E Small Housing Estates - 1 (joint), Ardee Rd, Castletown, & Balbradagh Park, Robinstown; 2 (joint), Old Terrace, Balbradagh, Robinstown, and Simonstown. Category F Medium Housing Estates - 1 Moyfenrath, Enfield; 2, Hillside Drive, Castletown; 3, Church View, Rathmolyon. Category G Large Housing Estates - 1, Hillview, Dunshaughlin; 2, Beechmount Estate, Navan; 3, Steeple Manor, Trim. Overall winner - Moynalty.