Donegal County Council says it continues to prioritise the fight against illegal dumping releasing new figures showing the level of enforcement.
In a statement today, the council says it  is making progress throughout the county in the fight against those who continue to dump waste illegally.
Given the remote nature of some of the sites used for illegal dumping, Donegal County Council has invested in various surveillance equipment in recent years for use throughout the county.
The investment includes a number of ‘trail’ cameras or covert cameras activated by infra red sensors, together with Road-Hawk Vehicle Digital Cameras.
Others include high spec long range cameras which are acquired for surveillance on illegal activities involving waste management issues and these have proven to be very useful.
Enforcement Activity
In 2012 Donegal County Council issued 173 fines or fixed penalty notices under the Litter Pollution Act 1997, up from 124 fines in 2011. The increase in the number of fines issued in 2012 is due partly to the increased level of resources invested by the Council in particular areas of the county.
A breakdown of litter fines (fixed penalty notices under the Litter Pollution Act 1997) issued in 2011 and 2012 are outlined in the following table:
 

Costs of Clean ups:
In 2012 Donegal County Council spent in the region of €410,900 in cleaning up illegal dumping sites in Donegal and this was down from the 2011 figure of €428,800.
The following is the breakdown of expenditure incurred by Donegal County Council in clean-up operations in 2011 and 2012