Outrage as catheter bags, nappies and dog poo bags dumped at Inch

A resident on Inch Island and nature reserve has expressed anger and frustration at the amount of rubbish left on Inch beach and pier.
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The resident regularly litterpicks in the area and says local residents are not to blame but holiday makers and people going for a day on the beach. In the past week alone, the resident found condoms, used sanitary products, dirty nappies and a number of full urine catheter bags.

He said: “Inch is so beautiful but it really annoys me how people leave the beach. There used to be a man who would tidy the place up and pick litter but he had a stroke a few years ago and had to stop. I took over then but this year I got fed up of it.

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“I had arranged with Donegal Council to give me bags and gloves, which have been helpful and I bought a scoop too but I’m lifting nappies, condoms, catheter bags and sanitary towels. It keeps getting worse.

Ribbish left at the pier on Inch Island.Ribbish left at the pier on Inch Island.
Ribbish left at the pier on Inch Island.

“During lockdown, when the dumps were closed, I saw a van drive down one day and a man dumped five bags of rubbish off the pier. One or two of them were open and I picked up cans and bits of plastic that had washed up around the pier but everything else had washed out. He was gone before I could get my shoes on but I don’t know what I would face if I did go down.

“It’s not people from Inch who do this. There’s barbecues, drink cans and bottles and things people bring for a day out. People come to fish off the pier and leave fishing lines, hooks, guts and bait behind them as well as beer cans and bottles. These aren’t locals because they take it with them, this is people from as far away as Belfast on their holidays.

“Council won’t put a bin on the beach because they think residents will use it, which they probably will and I can understand that but something has to be done. There’s so many beaches and piers in the area so you can’t employ someone to clean every beach. The litter warden in the area is flat out because there’s so much to do. I message him to come and lift the bags when I find them but by the time he comes, they could be lifted on to the beach and burned by young people starting a fire at night.

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“It’s just so disheartening. This is our home and people are coming here to destroy it. I wish the council would come more often and lift the rubbish and also put a bin on the end of the pier for people fishing.

“I think it all comes down to respect. People need to be educated not to leave rubbish and respect places they go. As the saying goes, ‘leave nothing but footprints’.”