Thousands of empty Buckfast bottles found in Claddagh Basin

Up to 100 traffic cones and “thousands” of empty Buckfast bottles have been found in the water at Claddagh Basin.

The plastic orange cones – costing between €40 and €50 each – were uncovered during upgrade works at the Claddagh Basin.

The works, which according to Galway City Councillor Niall McNelis are costing €115,000, include the replacement of the pedestrian bridge at the Claddagh Basin.

The new bridge will allow for the basin gates to be opened without having to bring in a crane. It also includes other upgrade works including a new footpath.

The Labour Party elected representative said the works at Claddagh Basin, being carried out on behalf of Corrib Navigation Trust, has exposed a whole host of items illegally dumped into the city’s waterways.

“You have about 100 traffic cones each costing €40 or €50 each, just dumped in the Claddagh Basin. But between Fisheries Tower, right back to the canal at Monroe’s, the water is drained due to the works at Claddagh Basin and there is serious littering.

“There is an iron board in there, a filing cabinet, a television, and there are thousands of bottles of Buckfast and litter and rubbish, which has been exposed,” said Cllr McNelis.

He has called on City Hall to take the lead and to divert resources into clearing up the rubbish.

The works at Claddagh Basin will take around five weeks, said Cllr McNelis, and he has suggested that personnel from the nearby Fire Station, should be asked to use their water hoses to clear the sides of the walls of the basin while it is at low tide.