DUBLIN, Ireland: Cork's northside and Dublin's north inner city have been ranked as the dirtiest areas in Ireland, according to the latest survey by Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL). While both city centers have improved overall cleanliness, these two areas were classified as "seriously littered."

The IBAL survey, which assessed 40 towns and cities, shows that the number of areas considered "dirty or littered" has dropped to its lowest level in five years. In total, two-thirds of towns were found to be clean—an improvement from last year.

Naas in County Kildare remains Ireland's cleanest town, followed by Ennis, Killarney, Leixlip, Monaghan, Sligo, Tullamore, Waterford City, and Wicklow. All these towns were rated as "cleaner than European norms."

However, Dublin's north inner city, which was already the worst-ranked area last year, has worsened further. Cork's northside has now joined it as one of the four areas deemed "seriously littered," along with Ballybane in Galway and Tallaght in Dublin. IBAL noted a sharp decline in cleanliness in both Ballybane and Tallaght.

A significant problem in these areas is seagulls tearing open bin bags. IBAL spokesman Conor Horgan said there would be no progress in Dublin's north inner city without a ban on refuse in plastic bags. A ban has already been introduced in 90 streets in the city's south inner city and will extend to the north inner city by midyear.

Mr. Horgan said the north inner city is noticeably dirtier than the nearby city center and called for legal changes that would allow Dublin City Council to act against owners of littered basement areas, a long-standing problem.

The survey, carried out by An Taisce inspectors for IBAL, also found that the area around Dublin Airport was "moderately littered"—a downgrade from its usual clean status.

There were some positives. Since the launch of Ireland's deposit return scheme last year, plastic bottles and litter have dropped by 50 percent. However, such litter was still found in 20 percent of the more than 500 sites surveyed. Coffee cup litter remains high, although disposable vape litter has decreased.

Areas like Roscommon town and Mahon in Cork, which had poor results in previous years, are now rated "clean to European norms." Middle Abbey Street, O'Connell Street, North Frederick Street, and the area near the Jervis Luas stop also showed noticeable improvement.

Still, illegal dumping on Dominic Lane and a littered basement at Parnell Square meant that Dublin city as a whole could not be rated "clean," IBAL said.