BUSINESSES and
households in Inishowen have been warned not to
dispose of waste items such as old furniture or
mattresses on bonfires this Halloween.
According to Donegal County Council, communities are
preparing for the time old tradition of lighting
bonfires to celebrate Halloween, but while
traditionally wood and straw were used for bonfires
there is increasing evidence that individuals are
using Halloween as an opportunity to dispose of
waste illegally.
Waste awareness officer with the council Suzanne
Tinney told the Inishowen Independent that providing
household waste material for burning in a Halloween
bonfire is committing a criminal offence.
“Materials such as tyres, pallets, sofas,
mattresses, furniture and ordinary household rubbish
are often burnt releasing harmful dioxins into the
air damaging our health and the environment.
“Donegal County Council is aware that businesses may
also be supplying waste materials such as tyres and
pallets to local communities to burn on bonfire
night. This practice is unacceptable, under the
Waste Management (Packaging) Regulations 2003 all
businesses now have an obligation to recycle
specified waste streams.”
Ms Tinney said that tyres in particular are
frequently burnt on bonfires even though they
produce toxic fumes, releasing dioxins into the air
damaging our health and the environment.
“It is important for the public to remember that
there is a long list of pollutants that can
potentially be generated by backyard burning
regardless of whether the waste is burned in piles
in the back of the garden, in barrels or in open
pits. We want people to enjoy their halloween
celebrations but we want them to do it responsibly
and without bonfires,” she concluded. |
