This week Cllr. Frankie Keena, Westmeath County Council lashed out at those people who have no regard for our environment by indiscriminately dumping litter in the Athlone area.
It is an outright disgrace with the amount of black bags and cable sheathing that is being dumped in Annaghorta Bog off the Mullingar road, he said. I am totally furious with these people, in fact to categories them as people would be passing them a compliment, these are inhuman beings who have no regard for our countryside and for people who like to use this lovely bog road for walks, etc., said Cllr. Keena.
I would just love to catch the culprits who are doing this dumping and I would have no difficulty in going to court to give evidence against them, he added. A number of months ago the Moydrum/Blyry Residents Association spent a full day voluntary cleaning up this bog and surrounding areas and now for me to witness the desecration of this beautiful area again with litter, it makes my blood boil, he angrily declared.
I have asked Westmeath County Council to examine each bag individually to try and find a paper trail to the villains and hopefully they will be successful. The cable sheathing is being dumped by a different individual who strips the copper out of the cable and then dumps the remaining sheathing in the bog. This is not the first time that this menace to our society has done this as similar deposits were found in Crosswood and Annaghorta Bogs before. A suspect large horsepower jeep plus trailor has been sited in these bogs and I only hope that concrete evidence can be found to prosecute him, he declared.
It is now time that Westmeath County Council played a more pro-active role in curtailing litter from being dumped in these areas and I will be very forceful in getting some preventative measures put in place, such as CCTV, added Cllr. Keena. In the meantime I would encourage the public to play their part and keep their eyes open for such illegal activities, and if they spot something please ring me immediately or else take a picture with their mobile phone and get in touch with me afterwards, he concluded
