Dedicated waste collection and overnight cleansing plans will be in place to support Belfast city centre in managing expected crowd numbers during the upcoming Comhaltas Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann.
With over 800,000 people expected in the city across the week, Belfast City Council is utilising a range of measures to keep the streets clear from litter and waste during the event.
Many city centre roads will close to vehicle traffic from 5am on Sunday 2 August to 7am on Monday 10 August, creating a safe and welcoming pedestrian zone for visitors to enjoy eight days of music and activity across streets and venues.
While buses will continue to operate around the zone to support people in getting to and from events, as well as workplaces, other vehicle access will be restricted, including commercial waste collections and business deliveries, which will move to an early morning window, between 4am and 8am, during the event.
Instead of the usual street bins, 40 on-street recycling stations will encourage visitors to sort and bin their waste, with collections for mixed dry recycling, food waste and general waste, alongside an additional 200 general waste bins at key footfall sites.
Volunteers will be on hand to signpost eventgoers towards their nearest bin station.
Ten dedicated bin hubs across the city centre will be used to support operatives clearing bins as they fill up during the day, with rubbish then collected overnight before being taken away for recycling.
To maintain safety during the day, heavy service vehicles will clean and clear the pedestrianised event zone through the night, ahead of the next day’s events.
Dedicated night-time crews will sweep and maintain the city centre from 11pm to 7am each evening, using enhanced resources and co-ordinated routes to ensure the area is refreshed and ready for visitors each day.
Commercial waste providers, supporting the city’s licensed premises and other venues, must complete their services during the early morning access window, with specific access routes in place, to help work around the council’s cleansing schedule and minimise spills and leaks during collections.
An early morning power-wash, where needed, will conclude the overnight cleansing programme.
The council’s own commercial waste collections will take place between 2am and 6am the morning after the usual collection day (from Monday 3 to Saturday 8 August), with normal service resuming on Monday 10 August.
There are also changes for the small number of residents living inside the event zone, with further information available on the council website – belfastcity.gov.uk/fleadh
Outside the city centre, all household and commercial waste collections will operate as normal. Residents are advised to follow guidance on presenting their bin correctly to keep streets and communities clean and tidy.
Reports of fly-tipping and illegal dumping can be still made online, at belfastcity.gov.uk/report, and the council website also has further advice for residents and local businesses on supporting clean streets, including details of the council’s free community clean-up initiative.
During the Fleadh, the council’s Environmental Education and Outreach team will also run free, family-friendly sustainability workshops at 2 Royal Avenue and Castle Place, covering everything from scrap instrument making to DIY event bunting, tying in with the week’s musical theme.
Full details are on the Fleadh Cheoil website – fleadhcheoil.ie
“Cleaning up during an event of this size and scale requires teamwork, organisation and co-ordination between our staff, residents, visitors and our business community,” said Councillor Jenna Maghie, Chair of the council’s People and Communities Committee.
“We all want Belfast to look its best during the Fleadh and to show our city at its finest. With additional staff, extra street bins with a strong recycling focus, specialised bin hubs to manage the flow of waste during the day and into the evening, and a dedicated delivery and waste collection window to support businesses, we’re putting the infrastructure in place to make that possible.
“Everyone can play their part too by binning their waste, keeping our streets, neighbourhoods and premises tidy, following the arrangements that have been put in place, and supporting our crews as they go about their vital work.”
