County streets are cleaner than all Wales average

STREETS in Carmarthenshire are cleaner than the all Wales average, according to a new report.

The survey, carried out by Keep Wales Tidy, gave Carmarthenshire an overall score of 69 (out of 100) for cleanliness*.

This is both an improvement on last year’s figure of 68.1 and above the all Wales figure of 67.9.

The survey also found that 98.2% of streets were grade B (predominantly free of litter and refuse apart from some small items) or above, which again is an improvement on 2010/11 and above the all Wales figure.

No D grade streets were found during the course of survey (heavily affected by litter and/or refuse with significant accumulations).

The Local Environmental Audit and Management System (LEAMS) report has been published following surveys carried out in Carmarthenshire in July 2011 and February 2012.

Carmarthenshire County Council’s Director of Technical Services Richard Workman congratulated both cleansing and environmental enforcement staff for all their hard work.

He added: “The council is responsible for removing litter from pavements, streets and public land and our staff do a fantastic job all year round in all types of weather conditions.

“The Street Scene division has a cleansing staff of 60, along with a number of mechanical sweeping machines and on average 40 tonnes of litter is removed every week at a cost of over £2.2 million per year.

“We aim to provide a flexible and responsive service, targeting the areas where it is needed most and maintaining high cleanliness standards throughout Carmarthenshire. Our service is continually monitored and reviewed for potential improvements”

He said that it was disappointing however, that the survey found that the percentage of streets affected by dog fouling had increased to 12.7%.

“We are working hard to tackle the problem of dog fouling and our enforcement officers regularly carry out patrols across the county,” said Mr Workman.

“So far this year 30 fixed penalty notices have been issued for dog fouling; however it is very difficult to catch people as our officers cannot be everywhere at once. We are appealing to the public to help us catch those responsible. Anyone caught failing to clean up after their dogs can be issued with a fixed penalty notice of £75 or prosecuted in court where the maximum fine is £1,000.”

The public also have a part to play in helping to keep the county clean and an extensive awareness-raising campaign has been launched to tackle the problem of litter, fly-tipping and dog fouling.

Chair of the council’s Environment Scrutiny Committee Cllr Jim Jones said: “I would again like to congratulate staff for all the hard work they carry out all year round, even working on Christmas Day.

“However, we all have a responsibility to keep Carmarthenshire clean; if there are no litter bins nearby please take your rubbish home to dispose of or keep it until you find a bin.

“By working together we can make Carmarthenshire a much cleaner and safer place for everyone.”

*The cleanliness index denotes the overall standard of cleanliness of adopted highways and relevant land within a local authority. The scale is from 0 to 100 and higher scores indicate better cleanliness.

• Grade A: No litter or refuse
• Grade B+: No more than three small items of litter
• Grade B: Predominantly free of litter and refuse apart from some small items
• Grade C: Widespread distribution of litter and/or refuse with minor accumulations
• Grade D: Heavily affected by litter and/or refuse with significant accumulations