Mullingar Tidy Towns committee is holding its first public clean-up morning of the summer on Saturday. Members of the public are asked to gather at the Market Square tomorrow morning, May 18, at 10am.
The committee will provide the bags and pickers, but recommend bringing gloves if you have them, according to spokesperson Marguerite Buckley.
“The clean-up is to prepare the town for the upcoming judging of the national SuperValu TidyTowns competition which takes place over the summer months. All are welcome to join in the clean-up and the committee is hoping for a large attendance on the morning,” added Marguerite.
The assessment of Mullingar town will be carried out by an independent panel of adjudicators and will take place during the months of June, July, and August. This assessment is conducted in secret and on unspecified dates.
Mullingar will be assessed under 10 criteria with a total of 400 marks available, and in 2012 the town scored 252 marks out of 400.
The committee is hoping to increase its scoring this year, and asks all businesses and householders to check the areas outside their premises for litter and to try to keep their buildings looking as well as possible.
Only three weeks ago, the committee were able to take advantage of a visit from Pat Nolan, a senior Tidy Towns adjudicator, who gave information talks in both Athlone and Mullingar.
Pat, a former tourism officer in the south east prior to his retirement, has adjudicated on over 2,500 centres over the last seven years.
“He gave them advice on the filling of the application form so as to maximise points for the Tidy Towns competition, and advice in the area of the practical work on the ground that makes a difference when the judge is assessing an area,” said Ruth Maxwell, from the council’s Environment Section, who organised the visits.
“He also focused and gave advice under the ‘wildlife’ and the ‘sustainable waste and resource management’ categories as these are proving to be difficult for many groups,” explained Ruth.
For further information on Mullingar Tidy Towns see www.mullingartidytowns.com or phone (087 ) 9879544.
