The Minister for the Environment has said he is demanding explanations from statutory authorities on why a blind eye had been turned to illegal dumps.
Dick Roche said he also wants to know why the authorities had failed in their duties.
He said it was not appropriate to take prosecutions in the district courts against what he called corporate criminals involved in illegal dumping.
The minister said he was angry that some of his constituents had bought new homes only to find they were beside 'a bloody great dump'. He added that there would have to be prosecutions over illegal dumps.
Mr Roche said that in the higher courts the law provided for fines of up to €15m and jail terms of up to 10 years for such offences.
Meanwhile, Minister Roche has said he is considering changing the limit that now exists on the size of large stores.
He told the Oireachtas Environment Committee that he wanted benefits for consumers of durable goods, but he stressed there would be no change to the limit on supermarkets.
