Calls have been made for CCTV cameras to be installed at known diesel sludge dumping hotspots in north Louth following three dumping incidents within the space of a month.
The issue was raised at the September meeting of Dundalk Municipal District by Cllr John Reilly, who said the illegal dumping seemed to have “died off” for a time but has now resurfaced.
“Unfortunately over the summer months we had three episodes of this diesel dumping again,” he told councillors.
Diesel sludge, a toxic by-product of the illegal fuel laundering industry, has long been a problem in border counties, with hazardous waste dumped in large containers in remote locations, creating significant environmental risks and leaving local authorities with costly clean-up operations.
Cllr Reilly told the council meeting that with three dumping incidents within month it was time to consider CCTV monitoring.
“There are three locations, which I won’t name,” adding that they are within the broader Kilcurry area of north Louth.
“I think it’s time we looked at placing cameras at them.”
Latest figures from Louth County Council show there were nine containers of diesel sludge dumped in the three incidents in August. A total of 68 containers have been removed by the local authority at various locations in 2026.
Cllr. Reilly told the meeting that cleaning up and removing the containers which are dumped “costs an absolute fortune”.
While the local authority is reimbursed by the Exchequer for the costs of employing specialist contractors to deal with the waste, taxpayers are ultimately paying the price.
Louth County Council has spent over €1.12million on cleaning up dumped diesel sludge since 2020.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme