Minutes:
Acknowledgements:
The Lord Mayor acknowledged the heroic actions of Members of Dublin Fire Brigade for saving a man’s life in Spain when they came across an accident on the motorway, and cordoned off the scene and performed critical interventions on the patient.
Congratulations:
On behalf of the Council the Lord Mayor extended her congratulations and best wishes to Councillor Daryl Barron on his recent marriage to Orla Fitzpatrick.
Conferences:
The Lord Mayor asked that Council approve attendance at the Sean MacDiarmida Summer School which took place on the 9th and 10th June. Due to time constraints the conference was agreed at the Special Group Leaders meeting of the 6th June. The Members approved the conference.
Freedom of the City:
The Lord Mayor announced that she was proposing to grant the Freedom of the City
to Duncan Stewart andGreta Thunberg for their significant contribution to the cause of environmentalism and climate action. They are both people of the highest integrity who have worked relentlessly to raise awareness of the twin challenges that define our age: climate and biodiversity. They have demonstrated a resolve and determination in their pursuit of a better future for the people of Dublin and the planet. The proposal was seconded by Councillor Michael Pidgeon.
The following resolution was agreed by Council:
“That Dublin City Council hereby resolves that the Honorary Freedom of the City of Dublin be conferred on Duncan Stewart and Greta Thunberg and that their names be inscribed on the Roll of Honorary Freedom of Dublin, pursuant to the provisions of Section 74 of the Local Government Act, 2001, in recognition of their enormous contribution to the City of Dublin in relation to Environmental Activism.”
Cllrs. Nial Ring and Mannix Flynn wished it noted that they opposed the resolution. Cllr. Sophie Nicoullaud wished it noted that she abstained.
Emergency Motions:
Five Emergency Motions were submitted for consideration all of which were ruled out of order by the Lord Mayor. However, with respect to Emergency Motion No. 4 in relation to street cleansing and Emergency Motion No 5 in relation to grass clipping collection, the Lord Mayor invited the Manager John Flanagan to make a statement on these matters.
John Flanagan outlined the extra resources that had been allocated to areas of high footfall in the city centre commercial district, to combat and manage the extra litter that is being generated and to deal with the effect of the prolonged dry spell and the impact this is having on the city’s streets and pavements. He informed Members that Street washing is provided by the night shift 5 nights per week (Sunday to Thursday) in the Commercial District Area where priority pedestrianised streets such as Grafton Street, O’Connell Street and Henry Street are deep-cleaned with a buffer machine. Additional supplementary cleansing is provided by a third party contractor on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, and financial resources have been allocated to continue this service, so that the city pavements can be cleaned in these high footfall areas as quickly as possible. Waste Management Services have just recently added a further cleansing crew to the day time shift work (6.00a.m – 2.00p.m), who will deep clean the Temple Bar Area on a Monday and Tuesday each week, before moving on to College Green, Dame street and Andrew street. In total there are 10/11 street cleansing vehicles in operation in the city on a weekly basis and it is the intention to add a further 3 vehicles and wash crews over the coming weeks. Every effort is made by the waste management operational teams to keep the city centre’s cleanliness to as high a standard as possible.
In relation to Grass Cuttings the Manager informed the meeting that in accordance with a more sustainable policy with regard to amenity grass maintenance to support the establishment of wildflower rich swards, the City Council will only be maintaining open spaces/greens and will not be cutting grass margins in residential estates. Residents who wish to maintain a more manicured margin can do so. Support for Tidy Towns and environmental groups who wish to contribute to the appearance of their neighbourhood streets will be available by contacting their local public domain officer. Should Resident Committee’s/Environmental Groups wish to cut the grass margin, it is DCC’s preference that the cut grass should be left in place to allow for return of valuable nutrients like nitrogen back into the soil in accordance with best practice.
While Waste Management are fully supportive of the Parks and Landscape biodiversity policy and the Environmental Protection Agency policy on grass cycling, we are mindful of resident’s groups hard work in maintaining their local areas. Where Residents Committee’s/Environmental Groups wish to maintain a more manicured margin, and wish this grass to be collected then they should only use Waste Management services new “Compostable bags”. These bags will be collected, subject to prior engagement with waste management staff and the local public domain teams, and when resources are available at times agreed between the Resident Committee’s and Waste Management Staff. Green waste from private gardens should not be presented for collection and should be disposed of within the brown bin. Green waste presented by private residents will be regarded as illegal dumping and could be subject to a fine.