Don't dump

A fortnight ago the Alderman was horrified to discover that a health risk had arisen near Lisneal College, where all manner of domestic and industrial waste, as well as syringes, had been discovered on waste land close to the school. The level and type of waste was of such concern to her that she appealed to the council to take immediate action to remove the rubbish.

The refuse has now been removed but Mrs Hamilton is warning that it must not be allowed to happen again.

"I was told that rats were thriving on the waste and that is just not acceptable so close to a school," she said.

Appealing for people to act responsibly and take their waste to official dump sites, she continued: "People need to realise that this was a one-off clean-up and the money for it has come from the ratepayer. In this day and age it is totally unacceptable that this kind of dumping is taking place so close to a school and that money from honest working people who care about their environment has to be used to clean up after unthinking, uncaring people who have no regard for others and don't care about the health and wellbeing of those who are sent out to sort out the mess they make.

"I appeal to people to show some respect not only for their environment but also for the pupils and staff who use Lisneal College, and for the residents who live nearby. It is horrendous to think there are people out there who think it is alright to inflict this kind of hazard on schoolchildren, some of whom have to walk past this filth to get to and from school. It is totally unacceptable," she said.

Mrs Hamilton went on to praise the work of the City Council's cleansing department for agreeing to undertake the clean-up.

"This was a one-off cleansing of the area. That land around Lisneal College is not adopted and it was not really the responsibility of the council's environmental health staff to maintain it. Investigations are still ongoing to ascertain who owns this land, but ultimately, it is a matter of doing what's right and I want to say to those who dumped this waste that it is not your ground, so stop dumping on it and use the official sites," she said.