Leixlip is third cleanest town in Ireland; Newbridge is "exceptionally clean"
Newbridge is "exceptionally clean"
Leixlip has been ranked as the cleanest in Co Kildare and the third cleanest town in Ireland in the latest survey by Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL), while Newbridge also performed strongly, finishing in 11th place.
The nationwide survey of 40 towns and cities found that litter levels remain broadly unchanged from last year, with 27 locations deemed clean. Sligo topped the rankings, ahead of Monaghan and Leixlip, while Waterford was once again named Ireland's cleanest city.
According to the An Taisce assessment, Leixlip achieved an excellent result, with eight of its ten surveyed sites receiving the top litter grade.
Inspectors praised the approach roads, Riverdale residential area, Main Street and Arthur Guinness Car Park. Riverdale was noted for a complete absence of litter, while Arthur Guinness Car Park was described as "a lovely town centre environment".
However, the Bring Centre at Lidl was identified as the town's most heavily littered location and was described as being close to becoming a litter blackspot.
"This site was poor in the IBAL 2025 survey and clearly needs more attention," the report stated.
Newbridge also recorded a strong performance, with seven of ten surveyed locations receiving the highest litter grade.
Among the areas singled out for praise were College Green, Main Street and Liffey Linear Park.
The town's Main Street was described as "exceptionally clean", while Liffey Linear Park was commended as "a wonderful park and river environment, with all elements suitably maintained".
The Bring Facility at Tesco was identified as Newbridge's most littered site, with inspectors noting that it had been heavily dumped upon.
Nationally, no town or city fell into the "seriously littered" or "litter blackspot" categories, a result welcomed by IBAL.
"As the peak season for tourist visitors approaches, we have fewer littered areas than we've had at any time in the last 25 years," said IBAL spokesperson Conor Horgan.
"The job's not done, but across the country, local authorities appear to have upped their game when it comes to tackling persistently littered sites and dumping in our towns and cities."
Despite the success of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), the survey found that bottles and cans remain a common sight on Irish streets. Plastic bottles were present at 19 per cent of surveyed sites and cans at 22 per cent - the highest levels recorded since the scheme was introduced.
"If we had hoped that the DRS would see this litter disappear from our streets, it's not happening," Mr Horgan said.
Coffee cup litter also reached its highest level since 2023, while cigarette butt litter increased significantly compared to last year.
The survey was carried out by An Taisce on behalf of IBAL. An Taisce receives funding from the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment through the Circular Economy Fund to support the surveys.