Beauty spot soiled by human faeces

Anti-social behaviour and littering, including human faeces, by a small minority is spoiling the enjoyment of amenities such as Rann Point for others.

The disgusting revelation was made at the July meeting of the Cavan Belturbet Municipal District.

Independent Belturbet Councillor Brendan Fay claimed he had been out in the area recently and the locals expressed their disquiet at the disgusting and loud behaviour of some campers and revellers.

“It is horrendous what is happening out there. Individuals are going to the toilet in the open air on footpaths and then discarding filthy rolls of toilet paper. It is a disgrace,” Cllr Fay outlined to the other elected members.

“Rann Point is one of the most beautiful and iconic views in County Cavan and it is such a pity that a small minority of people destroy it for everybody. There is dirty toilet roll everywhere – it is just disgusting,” he added.

The Belturbet man further highlighted that some of the visitors light fires, cause criminal damage to fencing and, in some cases, even bring large dogs, which scare other visitors.

“It is totally wrong and these individuals, who are in the minority, are just taking over whenever they arrive. I do not know what the solution is to this problem,” fumed Cllr Fay.

“I can’t understand how a human being can be so filthy – seeing fit to ‘poo’ on footpaths. They also cut down trees to light fires,” he continued.

Fianna Fáil’s Patricia Walsh said, while the sunshine brought everyone out, it also created problems such as these. “The message that should go out loud and clear from here is that they are welcome to come and enjoy the facilities at such beautiful locations beside the water, but they must respect it and also have respect for the local people who live in the area,” she said. “We have some lovely lakes in this county but they should be used and enjoyed in a respectful manner,” added Cllr Walsh.

Her party colleague John Paul Feeley asked what were the potential solutions to the problems.

Cllr Sean Smith (FF) said he too had representations from people from that area about the situation and highlighted instances of criminal damage.

“Local people said the local engineering staff had been absolutely superb dealing with issues out there. They do appreciate that the council is limited in what it can do. There has also been vandalism regarding private property – wire in fences has been cut and timber has been cut – and as Cllr Fay said there is then the filth that is left behind – some of that is in on private property,” said the Bawnboy man. He also highlighted noise complaints in the middle of the night when people are trying to sleep.

Cllr Smith said the gardaí had been informed about these matters and locals were pleased with their response.

“I think we should keep in touch with the gardaí on the matter and also liaise with the residents. Our executive engineer, Paul Mulligan, has been giving a great service to the locals. Working collectively, we will endeavour to improve this situation.

“I feel for the local people there and farmers who have land fenced. When wire fences are cut down, cattle can wander out onto the roads. The individuals responsible show damn bad regard for private property,” he said.

Responding on the issue, the council’s Director of Services, Brendan Jennings said it was not a “straight forward” issue and has been “going on for a period of time”.

He said the council is exploring a number of solutions to deter such behaviour and would welcome any suggestions by members.

Since the meeting The Anglo-Celt has learned that this filthy behaviour is not confined to beauty spots but also to toilets used by the public in supermarkets and in churches.

This reporter was shown the filthy mess in one of the toilets, which had to be cleaned up by staff.