IBAL Survey Finds Beaches At Bray And Brittas Bay Clean To European Norms

The annual survey of coasts and inland waterways by business group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) shows both Bray and Brittas Bay deemed clean, the latter improving on last year, when it was ‘moderately littered’.

The study of 33 areas nationwide revealed our most littered areas to have cleaned up but the majority of beaches falling short of clean status, despite the unsettled summer meaning lower visitor numbers.    

Beaches, harbours, rivers and their immediate environs were monitored by An Taisce in June and July. While there was a 50% rise in clean sites overall, the survey again found our coastal areas to be more littered than our towns, which IBAL researches as part of its Anti-Litter League programme.

The An Taisce report for Bray seafront stated:

“Bray Beach / Promenade / Environs scored very well in last summer's survey and things were no different this time around. It was exceptionally clean, with the beach spotless. There was a virtual absence of litter throughout the remainder of the survey area - small accumulation of cigarette butts in one car park and minor food related items along the promenade. The promenade, bicycle paths, playground, seating areas, planting, band-stand etc. were all very well presented and maintained.  There were ample bins throughout the extensive survey area, albeit limited opportunity for recycling.  Increasingly we are seeing the opportunity to 'separate' waste right beside regular street bins and not just dedicated recycle areas - with such a heavily used  and extensive area, this seems like a missed opportunity  at Bray seafront.The 'Water Refill' station is a great addition.   Signage in the area was generally in good order but graffiti was very much a feature on the dedicated dog fouling bins. A nice feature is the tie-in with 'Tidy Towns' with the planter boxes towards the end of the promenade.”

The An Taisce report for Brittas Bay stated:

“Brittas Bay Beach and the associated car parks and Brittas Bay North and Brittas Bay South were very much deserving of the top litter grade.  There were plenty of litter bins at the pedestrian access to the beach and another series of bins at a separate access from South Beach Car Park.  Litter bins were freshly presented, in good order and not overflowing.  There were no litter issues in the area surrounding the Recycle Facility at South Beach Car Park.  Life-belts / visitor information signage were in good order and there was minimal graffiti.  Apart from a very occasional bucket and spade buried / sticking out of the sand and some cigarette butts at the base of the picnic tables there were no obvious litter issues.  The number of visitors to the beach at the time of surveys was low due to poor weather.”

The popular beaches at Portmarnock and Lahinch deteriorated to ‘littered’ status,as did Dog’s Bay in Galway, while those at Bundoran, Ballybunion, Skerries and Strandhill were deemed ‘moderately littered’. Clean beaches included Killiney, Salthill and Tramore, as well as Brittas Bay, which improved on last year.   

IBAL coastal litter survey 2023