What happened to Blessington Lake?

jackstapleton

I visited Blessington lake today for the first time in about a year. I was shocked and disgusted. The entire area is littered with rubbish - all over the beach, car park, and even some in the lake itself. The beach around from the car park seems to have been eroded - there are trees blocking the beach. As I walked around, I could see that there were two scumbags in a tent.

Two years ago, I used to go regularly, and although there was some BBQ going on, the place was generally clean. Given that this is a key, if not the sole, amenity in the town, why isn't the rubbish cleaned up, and some effort to preserve the lake beaches.

I certainly won't be returning. And given that the place is deserted, I imagine others feel the same way. What a shame.

laraghrider

1 on the beach and trees thing it's called growth and natural erosion/landscaping. No river or lake will look the same today as it did 10-20 years ago.

On the litter well that's day tripping scumbags. Cycling around the lakes Saturday previous, two 65's pulled up in the village crammed with day trippers to the lakes. On the way back down around the rowing club was full of scum bags with mountains of beer. Suffice to say, they didn't bother carrying all the empties home!

Ash.J.Williams

The ESB own the lake and they obviously haven't cleaned up since the invasion last weekend.

NobodyImportant

Last weekend was the issue i bet too.

Bray seafront looked awful the next morning.

jackstapleton

Ok. The first poster provides a good explanation, but this still doesn't explain why nobody in the area volunteered to clear up. I know it isn't local residents/businesses' responsibility per se, but surely all the businesses in the area have an interest in keeping the lake area clean.

As to natural erosion, it seems a lot of erosion since April 2012.

It really is a shame for such a wonderful amenity.

Ash.J.Williams

jackstapleton wrote: »

Ok. The first poster provides a good explanation, but this still doesn't explain why nobody in the area volunteered to clear up. I know it isn't local residents/businesses' responsibility per se, but surely all the businesses in the area have an interest in keeping the lake area clean.

As to natural erosion, it seems a lot of erosion since April 2012.

It really is a shame for such a wonderful amenity.

it's technically private property, and the only business boosted by scumbags drinking by the lake are tallaghts off licenses.

jackstapleton

yes, but the scumbags don't contribute to the blessington economy

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

it's technically private property, and the only business boosted by scumbags drinking by the lake are tallaghts off licenses.

laraghrider

jackstapleton wrote: »

Ok. The first poster provides a good explanation, but this still doesn't explain why nobody in the area volunteered to clear up.

Yeah hold on let's all of us get out there and clean up after every bloody scumbag from tallaght leaves the trays of scrumpy all over the place.

Why not get the tallaght residents association up to clean up the place.

jackstapleton

laraghrider wrote: »

Yeah hold on let's all of us get out there and clean up after every bloody scumbag from tallaght leaves the trays of scrumpy all over the place.

Why not get the tallaght residents association up to clean up the place.

Because it's not Tallaght! Its Blessington!

laraghrider

jackstapleton wrote: »

Because it's not Tallaght! Its Blessington!

It's the 65 crowd that does it though!

SimonLynch

Blessington was annexed by Tallaght in 2006 by the TEF (Tallaght Expeditionary Force) They defeated the brave natives with happy slapping and the use of tactics learned from Pol Pot's 'How to be a complete and utter ladybits'

dodderangler

laraghrider wrote: »

It's the 65 crowd that does it though!

And where is your proof of that??
The only people I've seen drinkin and BBQ up there were not kids and very few of them were irish
I fish it and that's my proof on it!
Are you also implying that there is no teenagers or anyone else that drink and BBQ up there from blessington itself?

laraghrider

dodderangler wrote: »

And where is your proof of that??
The only people I've seen drinkin and BBQ up there were not kids and very few of them were irish
I fish it and that's my proof on it!
Are you also implying that there is no teenagers or anyone else that drink and BBQ up there from blessington itself?

Like I said earlier the weekend previous the crowds that got off the 65 with mountains of drink. Went down by the rowing club and set up shop. This was repeated all day that Saturday.

"dodderangler wrote:

I fish it and that's my proof on it!

I can't argue with those credentials!

Gatling

And only people from tallaght use the 65 bus all the way from the city centre to blessington and only teens from tallaght bring trash and booze ,no teens from blessington hang around drinking at the lake at all

TireeTerror

Ah so the 65 crowd is people getting off a public bus. When I started reading this, I thought it was some gang name or something, thats why I continued to read on!

stuchyg

Lived in Blessington since I was 12, now 26. Never once did I or anyone that I grew up with and went to school with go to the boathouse to drink and sunbathe. The beach maybe and that was only because we were too young to get into the pubs.

The litter you see is most defo from people coming out on the 65 or driving out and leaving their empties and rubbish behind them

Ash.J.Williams

Yeah I was born beside the lake and wouldn't pi$s in it, nor Would anyone I know..bad juju ...no good will come of it

Adrift

but this still doesn't explain why nobody in the area volunteered to clear up

Are you for real? I'm a resident and although like most up here there is great pride taken in the locality there's no way I'm volunteering to clean up after a session like that.

Yes, we have our own teens here but in general the area is largely litter free. In fact there's a tidy towns campaign going on presently in which many residents devote their free time in the evening, on top of that a lot of the estates are involved in similar programmes. So on top of this you now want residents to clean up the lake area any time we have a sunny day? All because whatever shower arrive up can't be bothered taking a few cans to the nearest bin?

Perhaps if you see this activity (littering, Illegal camping) going forward you should report it to the relevant authorities instead of blaming the locality who clearly had nothing to do with it.

NobodyImportant

Whilst i agree with you Adrift, the realities are that there is no point in reporting the littering. You dont know about it until the group leave, by the time (if they can be bothered) Gardai arrive, the litter bugs are gone, even if they werent, its nearly impossible to prove.

So you have rubbish after a sunny weekend. Thats not going to change.

I live near a pub and just have to accept what goes on, it isnt going to change, so weekend mornings i go out and pick up the bottles/cans/broken glass all by myself. The area looks tidier and the tidier it is, the less likely people treat it like a tip.

Perhaps the council should be informed and hopefully they could place temporary wheely bins over the summer or something and you might have a hope of people using them then.

Sulla Felix

NobodyImportant wrote: »

Perhaps the council should be informed and hopefully they could place temporary wheely bins over the summer or something and you might have a hope of people using them then.

I emailed the council over the past few summers suggesting the same. Didn't even get an auto-generated receipt confirmation. :rolleyes:
I absolutely hate, hate, hate parish pump politics, but I might have to say it to Timmins next time I see him about. Going through a politician really seems like the only way to get anything done in this country.

collie353

Hi was up in blessington lake today as I often do in the summer was amazed with the amount off rubbish as already posted and along the water close to the beach looked anything but clear cointanamated with God knows what.Rang wicklow council already knew about it .All I can say there is no litter bins that I could locate and thats no excuse for blighting a beautiful area its an absolute disgrace.The real shame is the people that do it dont give a dam about the country that we all live in and should be able to enjoy rant over.

Ash.J.Williams

I heard the guy patrolling the lake was told to F** off or he'll be severely beaten.

collie353

Well that says it all let the minority ruin an beauty spot for everybody else what a shame

westwicklow

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

I heard the guy patrolling the lake was told to F** off or he'll be severely beaten.[/QUOTE

Yep, that's usually not the case though so it's an extreme example but, with increasing frequence, it is happening..... and not by locals mind!

There is another element to this which bothers me also and that is the amount of discarded fishing line along the shoreline which although not too unsightley, can cause severe difficulties to bird and animal life. I have fished the lake for some decedes now and know that sometimes, it's possible to loose a line in underwater weeds, debris or stones, in chimneys, walls and trees and ok, sometimes one can get a line into an irretrievable "birds nest" situation, but it galls me to see so much of the stuff on the shoreline, left by "anglers" who should know better!

Eh.... sorry about the rant folks!!

dodderangler

@Westwicklow
I know exactly what you are talking about. Along the shore of a well known spot called overflow the amount of disgarded line( cheap quality lidl and aldi crap) all along the bank and in the trees is ridiculous. Rarely I would get caught or birds best but I've always either took it home or burned the line and took it home. I've found cheap spinners and all up there and they're always same lidl and aldi crap for a few measly euro for a few lads and ladies camping for the day who don't give a sh1t about what happens their equipment

HemlockOption

TireeTerror wrote: »

Ah so the 65 crowd is people getting off a public bus. When I started reading this, I thought it was some gang name or something, thats why I continued to read on!

I thought it was a reference to delinquent OAP's

westwicklow

dodderangler wrote: »

@Westwicklow
I know exactly what you are talking about. Along the shore of a well known spot called overflow the amount of disgarded line( cheap quality lidl and aldi crap) all along the bank and in the trees is ridiculous. Rarely I would get caught or birds best but I've always either took it home or burned the line and took it home. I've found cheap spinners and all up there and they're always same lidl and aldi crap for a few measly euro for a few lads and ladies camping for the day who don't give a sh1t about what happens their equipment

Exactly.... couldn't have put it any better myself!!

Last weekend, had the pleasure of removing descarded (supermarket junk) line from a gull which had become entangled around his/her legs and couldn't fly off cos the other end of the line had a spinner on it and was stuck fast under the water. You wouldn't get it in a movie!! So, off with the boots etc. and in I go as one does what one can to save the creature and, after a while, he/she waddled off up the sand. Whatsmore, this isn't the only time such a situation has happened to me and I'm sure, other people have similar experiences.... all due to litter louts!

Again, sorry for the continued rant folks!!!

Geansai Rua

I'm from the local area and there is no way I'd clean up every time the those kind of people come out and destroy the place. Its private property first of all!

The fact is that the people leaving the rubbish are not from the local area and do get off the bus or drive down for the day. Fact is they are mainly from Dublin, or foreign. I know people will not like me saying that, but its true...
Instead of putting the rubbish in the car they pile it up in the car park. It bugs me that people will actually pick it up and put it in a pile but not go to the bother of bringing it home.

As to the erosion levels, the level of the lake depends on the dam and other things. Sometimes there are no beaches, sometimes there is nothing but sand!

As for the people swimming in the lake.... Good luck with that! Wouldn't touch that water myself.. Yuck!

Ash.J.Williams

Geansai Rua wrote: »

I'm from the local area and there is no way I'd clean up every time the those kind of people come out and destroy the place. Its private property first of all!

The fact is that the people leaving the rubbish are not from the local area and do get off the bus or drive down for the day. Fact is they are mainly from Dublin, or foreign. I know people will not like me saying that, but its true...
Instead of putting the rubbish in the car they pile it up in the car park. It bugs me that people will actually pick it up and put it in a pile but not go to the bother of bringing it home.

As to the erosion levels, the level of the lake depends on the dam and other things. Sometimes there are no beaches, sometimes there is nothing but sand!

As for the people swimming in the lake.... Good luck with that! Wouldn't touch that water myself.. Yuck!

I wouldn't say "yuck" i just wouldn't swim there for fear of drowning!! ...took a drive around to see if the levels had dropped and the bloody bridge was on fire!! scumbags!

Ash.J.Williams

westwicklow wrote: »

Exactly.... couldn't have put it any better myself!!

Last weekend, had the pleasure of removing descarded (supermarket junk) line from a gull which had become entangled around his/her legs and couldn't fly off cos the other end of the line had a spinner on it and was stuck fast under the water. You wouldn't get it in a movie!! So, off with the boots etc. and in I go as one does what one can to save the creature and, after a while, he/she waddled off up the sand. Whatsmore, this isn't the only time such a situation has happened to me and I'm sure, other people have similar experiences.... all due to litter louts!

Again, sorry for the continued rant folks!!!

all the lines i lost are stuck in weeds at the bottom of the lake!

westwicklow

At the end of the day, I suppose, the lake area is used by many many people, but it's not owned by many, not locals, blow-ins, non-nationals, even the 65-bus-gang, the anglers, the boaters or even the mad, jumping off the [burning] bridge swimmers into the murky, hairy fish infested, haunted water!! However, if debris is dumped on my property, I can be held responsible. So, perhaps a robust representation should be made to the owner of the lake, get a dialogue established and see what happens then! The owner probably doesn't want the rubbish as much as we don't! Who knows, it may even lead to a more controlled type of access and better local management in association with nearby voluntary organisations/groups to what is a great and undervalued resource in the area.... even if they plundered os locals of their lands!!!