IBAL SUCCESS FOR LONGFORD
Longford achieved a litter free status in the IBAL (Irish Business Against Litter) results announced today. IBAL in conjunction with AnTaisce carry out inspections of 30 towns and cities in Ireland. Longford scored poorly in this competition in 2002 but has seen a transformation in 2003 finishing 12th, then 5th and now has gained an unbelievable litter free rating, based on official European standards. The achievement has been the result of a huge community effort since October 2002 spearheaded by a joint effort between Longford Tidy Towns and Longford Chamber of Commerce.

Andy O'Dowd, Chairman of Longford Tidy Towns, was delighted with the results. Speaking this week he said

"Longford's ratings in the IBAL League have improved dramatically and we have now moved from the bottom of the IBAL League to a litter free status, all within a very short time - we are absolutely thrilled and delighted with the result.

This result is down to the huge efforts of a large number of people over the last thirteen months and I want to thank those people, particularly Longford Tidy Towns and Longford Chamber of Commerce who worked in close co-operation with Longford Town Council to achieve this success. I would also like to thank and compliment the many residents of Longford who have made Longford a special place by looking after their own areas and thereby setting an example for others to follow, people like Maureen Mulryan and her neighbours in St Emer's Estate who have made a very positive contribution to the area.

Longford Town Council staff sweep the main streets of the town on a daily basis. The contribution of this to tidiness should not be underestimated. The Council's investment in a specialised green machine for footpaths also made the footpaths look so much cleaner. Both Litter Wardens made a big contribution during the year and those with litter or graffiti on their properties can expect stiff fines in 2004. The Town Council initiated many other improvements during the year, such as the resurfacing of Bog Lane, developing the green area at Fairgreen, new footpaths outside the Post Office & Centenary Square and landscaping along the Camlin at Fee Court.

Coming back to the success in the IBAL competition, which focuses only on litter, the volunteers should remember that Longford would not have achieved this success without their help. The achievement is also due to financial help from numerous sponsors.

Our neighbours have also done very well and we congratulate Cavan, Carrick-on-Shannon, Mullingar and Roscommon on their achievements in the IBAL League".

Mr O'Dowd then went on to comment about 2004...

"While we have achieved a fantastic result, it is critical that the success be maintained. Other towns have seen their ratings fall rapidly, for example last year's overall winner, Carlow, finished in 16th place.

People only see what a town looks like today, not what it looked like when IBAL visited a few months ago.

It is therefore very important that both Longford Town Council and Longford County Council allocate additional resources to ensure all parts of the town are kept litter free on an ongoing basis into the future - particularly side streets, back lanes, industrial estates and approach roads. These are the areas that created such bad marks for us in the past and must be dealt with by the Council in the future, if we are to sustain the achievements of 2003.

Getting litter free status is a fantastic achievement but we still have a long way to go before we can compare ourselves to Ardagh and Newtowncashel. However, success on litter is a great first step and is a wonderful source of pleasure for us today.

We hope the result will motivate others to play their part in 2004. Longford has achieved a litter free status, we like it that way and the public won't accept a return to the old days.

A clearly happy man, Mr O'Dowd then went on to mention Christmas. "It's a great day for Longford and especially for the volunteers who have set an example. We wish all those involved an enjoyable Christmas, a Christmas when they can rightly sit back with much pride".

Michael Keenan, Vice Chairman and PRO of Longford Tidy Towns, has been one of the main organisers of the anti litter campaign over the year. Speaking to us this week, he said

"Longford moved from 29th place out of 30 towns to the 3rd cleanest town in Ireland, with a litter free status. We had hoped for a good result and we are thrilled with the outcome. It is an incredible boost for the image of Longford and shows what can be achieved when people take responsibility and work together.

Progress is rarely achieved without change. The big change in Longford over the last year was the involvement of so many volunteers, which, together with a major awareness campaign, finally began to change old mindsets.

Ordinary people realised that pride is a verb, not just a feeling, and became involved in tidying up numerous parts of the town twice a week, every week since October 2002. Their involvement together with the daily sweep by Longford Town Council and work carried out by FAS schemes made a huge difference.

Volunteers came from all parts of the community, for example, business people, priests, solicitors, soldiers, council staff, journalists, accountants, unemployed, travelling community, housewives, youth and the elderly and members of various organisations such as the Lions Club. Foreign nationals living in our town also made a very important contribution the campaign throughout the year.

Volunteers were involved in litter pick-ups, not only when the sun shone, but also in the wind, rain and cold. They set an example for others to follow - indeed the campaign was so successful that it became almost fashionable to pick up litter in Longford - something that was unimaginable a year ago".

Michael Keenan continued…. We were delighted with the feedback received from other Tidy Town winners. We were particularly pleased to hear comments from residents of Westport who won the National Tidy Towns award, complimenting Longford on how well it looks. Like many people driving through Longford during they year, they, too, noticed volunteers in Longford wearing the distinctive "Keep Longford Tidy" yellow jackets , working not only within the town but also on the approach roads.

Tidiness and self respect plays a major part in the well-being of any community and I believe this result will be a catalyst for the further development of Longford town. It has already been a great year for Longford winning the FAI cup and benefiting from major job announcements from Abbot and decentralisation.

Longford has made its mark in 2003 and must be the envy of many towns around the country- long may it continue.