401. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount expended by the NPWS in respect of clearing and disposing of illegally dumped materials on sites it manages in 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026, by year, site and amount expended; and the steps the NPWS has taken to mitigate and prevent dumping on its sites. [52988/26]

For the most part it is the staff of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department who remove debris and rubbish as part of their routine patrols and as the need arises.

In most areas, this dumping activity remains sporadic and does not warrant a separate accounting line to record costs incurred.  In some areas, these tasks are supplemented by local organisations, for example in Co. Wicklow the PURE project is an environmental partnership project and the first of its kind in Ireland which incorporates statutory and non-statutory organisations, including; Wicklow County Council, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, South Dublin County Council, Coillte, the NPWS, and the Wicklow Uplands Council which was established to combat illegal dumping and fly-tipping in the Wicklow / Dublin uplands areas.