Skibbereen man praised for road litter clean-up

A LETTER writer has praised an anonymous street cleaner in Skibbereen for his tireless efforts but insisted that prevention is better than cure.

Michael Leahy of Bawnishal, Skibbereen, was prompted to write the letter to a national newspaper after hearing National Spring Clean adverts on the radio.

He said he felt compelled to tell the paper’s readers about ‘an anonymous man’ who has been picking up rubbish – mainly tin cans and coffee cups – along a two-mile stretch on the Marsh Road outside Skibbereen and taking it away in bags.

‘What galls me,’ Mr Leahy said, in a letter to The Irish Times, ‘is that a fortnight after he had made his first collection, he collected as much rubbish again, and likewise a fortnight later.’

‘Why,’ he asked, ‘there are no adverts on radio or television encouraging drivers and passengers not to throw their tin cans out the window is beyond me. Surely prevention is better than cure?’ 

Francis Hunt, the PRO of Skibbereen Tidy Towns, said the efforts of this man are very much appreciated by the local committee.

Mr Hunt said: ‘He has been doing it for years, for as long as I can remember, and in other places too.’

The PRO said he would agree that prevention is better than cure but felt that the message isn’t getting through because people continue to litter the roadside.