Mountmellick praised
Members of Mountmellick Tidy Towns committee and staff of Super Valu busy at work. The effort of the Mountmellick committee was lauded by the Tidy Towns adjudicator.
THE efforts of the Mountmellick Tidy Towns committee to combat illegal dumping are lauded and they’ve been encouraged to carry out a waste audit.
The Tidy Towns adjudicator stated, “While your efforts to combat illegal dumping are laudable, the waste minimisation category is concerned with encouraging groups to think of innovative ways to minimise production of waste in the completion of Tidy Towns projects.”
“Carrying out a waste audit is also an effective way of raising awareness about waste minimisation and for identifying who is generating waste, what waste is being generated and how it is been disposed of.
“Once this information is known, targeted actions can be identified. Another option for raising awareness would be organising a waste minimisation/home composting seminar with the environmental awareness officer in Laois County Council.”
Mountmellick, with a committee of 26 people, increased its marks from 250 last year to 256 in 2012. The adjudicator says it is impressive to attract such support and added that he enjoyed his visit to see the work of the committee ‘at first hand’ and they are to be commended.
The architecture of the town was described as fascinating with ‘original and interesting buildings around every corner’. O’Connell Square provides an excellent central point for the town and the adjudicator asks, “one wonders if the principal function of this attractive space should be car parking?” The Tidy Towns group are praised for their work with planting, mapping and erecting information boards.
They are also commended for supplying paint. “Well done on your initiative of supplying paint for improving boundary walls – have the recycling centres been considered as a source of supply for the paint? This could provide a low cost alternative as well as reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and other forms of disposal.”
There are few landscaping beds on the approach roads to Mountmellick prompting the adjudicator to ask, “Is this an opportunity to improve the impression given to the visitor?”
The completion of the Mountmellick Wildlife Plan is welcomed and the report added, “One assumes that the information for your story boards (proposed for later on in 2012) has come from this survey. It is also heartening to read that you are working with the Gun Club to produce a video showing wildlife on Mountmellick Bog as this sounds like an exciting project that could help raise awareness of the rich biodiversity in your town.”
The approach roads to Mountmellick, the standard of litter control and tidiness are ‘generally high’ however the adjudicator suggests that some improvements were possible. Instances of poor signage, overgrown landscape beds and some graffiti was also noted on the green substation directly across from Kirwan Park.
The adjudicator was pleased to read in the Mountmellick Action Plan that the town has a number of residents associations working to improve their estates and local areas.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Weather for Portlaoise
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 9 C to 17 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 5 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 21 mph
Wind direction: North west
