Naas is Ireland’s cleanest town - for a third time

FOR the third time Naas has been named the most litter-free town in Ireland by Irish Businesses against Litter (IBAL).

The award was announced on Monday morning, and the Dr Tom Cavanagh Memorial Trophy was presented to the Cathaoirleach of County Kildare cllr Kevin Duffy at the Naas Library Cultural Centre at noon.

It was a great triumph for the county as Maynooth,  last year’s winner, came fifth of the 40 towns and city centres surveyed.

Chair of Naas Tidy Towns, Cllr Bill Clear, expressed immense pride and gratitude.

“We are absolutely over the moon to receive this award,” he said.

“Winning the IBAL award for the third time is a huge achievement for our town and a reflection of the incredible work put in by everyone involved. It’s fantastic to see our efforts recognised and rewarded.” 

Cllr Clear extended heartfelt thanks to the many individuals and groups who contributed to this success, including the dedicated volunteers, especially Vourneen Hennessy and Josie Kelly, the Community Employment workers, and the hardworking outdoor staff of Kildare County Council.

“This is a real team effort, and our community has come together to ensure Naas remains a beautiful and clean place for all to enjoy” he said.

Cathaoirleach of the County of Kildare, Kevin Duffy said: “This is a great achievement for Naas and a testament to all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes to keep the town looking so well. 

"I’m delighted to offer sincere congratulations to all involved. The award is a well-deserved acknowledgement of the work of Naas Tidy Towns, the local retail community, and Kildare County Council amongst many others.”

Annette Aspell, deputy chief executive at Kildare County, Council said: “This award shows the importance of voluntary work at local community level. 

"We would like to formally recognise everybody who contributed to this achievement, including Naas Tidy Towns, our municipal district team and our environment team”.

“This didn’t happen overnight and it’s a great result compared to the early days of IBAL surveys,” said Conor Horgan, a spokesperson for An Taisce.

“A new addition to the survey sites was the recently opened Naas Plaza – spotless on the day of the IBAL survey.

“The Canal Bank and Basin environment wasn’t just a waterside amenity but has been further expanded to include ‘Naas Community Garden’ with colourful low-lying planting.

“Clearly a careful eye is kept on the derelict site at Canal Basin as there was no litter directly associated with it.

“Following the great success in last year’s IBAL Anti-Litter League, Maynooth continues to outperform almost all of the towns surveyed in 2024.

“With so many top ranking sites, there were some which deserved special mention – Leinster Street, SuperValu Shopping Centre and Courthouse Square – the latter is a lovely town centre environment which has been attractively laid out and well maintained, however, the car park at Lidl was moderately littered."

On a positive note, 2024 saw a further fall in the number of sites within cities and towns that were deemed ‘litter blackspots’, which suggests that local authorities were generally more effective in tackling urban dumping and in addressing sites that IBAL had previously highlighted.

The survey also revealed a near 50 per cent fall in the prevalence of plastic bottles and cans in the 500 sites monitored since the deposit return scheme was introduced last year.

“We are definitely seeing cans and bottles disappear from our streets, which is very welcome – not only are they unsightly, but the bottles contribute to the very real problem of plastic pollution. 

"However, it is clear from our survey that people continue to discard a wide range of litter types with flagrant disregard for their surroundings”.

“The need for such measures is evident in the stubbornly low penetration levels of refillable coffee cups and the proliferation of highly damaging vape litter, which cannot be recycled.

“If we are to see sustainable improvement nationwide, it is important that the incoming regime maintain the momentum on anti-litter legislation.” Killarney, which outlawed disposable coffee cups in 2023, was one of the most improved towns last year, rising from 14th to 4th in the rankings.