Dublin City Council is responsible for co-ordinating and overseeing the enforcement of waste regulation in the East Midlands Region (EMWERLA). As the lead authority for the Region and the nominated authority for the National Trans-Frontier Shipment Office (NTFSO), the City Council has set up a multi-agency group in the East-Midlands region to tackle serious environmental waste crime. Representative agencies include An Garda Síochána, Office of the Revenue Commissioners, Department of Social Protection, The Work Place Relations Committee and the National TFS Office.
The first multi-agency operations were carried out on the 20th and 21st October on suspected unauthorised waste activity sites in the area of Fingal and South Dublin County Council with the assistance of both County Councils. The multi-agency approach used on the day proved to be very beneficial, leading to the detection of serious environmental waste crime and other major criminal activities. Follow up steps are being taken by the agencies involved with a view to taking proceedings further where warranted. This is the first time a multi-agency approach has been used by a regional waste enforcement lead authority to tackle serious environmental waste crime.
Brian White from Dublin City Council who is the head of the East Midlands Waste Enforcement Regional Lead Authority and the National Trans-Frontier Shipment Office said “The success of these recent operations is due to the planned and co-ordinated approach taken and co-operation of all agencies involved. It is our intention to build on this success and continue to tackle serious environmental waste crime on a multi-agency basis in the East Midlands Region.”