Leitrim County Council among the lowest performers in environmental enforcement in 2024, EPA
The council met just six of 19 National Enforcement Priorities, down from 12 in 2023, as staff shortages hit performance
Leitrim County Council was among the councils with the lowest environmental enforcement performance in the country in 2024, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA ).
Local authorities are tasked with delivering the National Enforcement Priorities (NEPs), which aim to improve air and water quality, promote increased recycling and re-use of waste and reduce people’s exposure to transport noise for those living in the county.
Leitrim County Council achieved just six of 19 National Enforcement Priorities in 2024, down from 12 in 2023 and eleven fewer than it managed in 2022.
“Staff shortages and difficulties in filling key posts across the period 2023 to 2024 had a negative impact on Leitrim County Council’s ability to meet their targets under the National Environment Priorities,” a spokesperson for Leitrim County Council has told the Leitrim Observer.
They added: “Key positions within the Environment Team have now been recently filled and Leitrim County Council are in line to reach our targets under the National Environment Priorities for 2025.”
Leitrim was joined in the bottom five counties in the country by Galway City, Sligo, Clare and Donegal, who also scored a moderate to limited rating for their adherence to standards.
Despite Leitrim’s struggles, the national picture shows improvement as Local authorities improved their overall environmental enforcement performance by 20 per cent over the past three years, with 79 per cent of the National Enforcement Priority (NEP) assessments now meeting the required standard in 2024.
Six local authorities achieved high performance scores in 2024, namely Meath, Dublin City, South Dublin, Kildare, Fingal and Cork City Councils.
“This report shows that most local authorities are responding to the challenge, but some, such as Leitrim, Galway City, Sligo, Clare and Donegal, are lagging behind and need to do better,” said Dr Tom Ryan, Director of the EPA’s Office of Environmental Enforcement.