Following the publishing of the National Litter Report 2017, the causes and composition of litter across Ireland were revealed.
On-the-spot fines for littering are currently €150 but will soon be significantly increased according to a new report.
The National Litter Pollution Report found that of the country's litter, the main constituent elements were cigarette-related (56.3%), packaging (17.6%), food-related (9.0%), and sweet wrapper-related (7.9%).
Other results collated from the report found that 15.6% of areas surveyed were litter free, the second highest level ever achieved and an increase of 2.4% when compared to 2016 results.
In the findings, 63.9% of areas surveyed were slightly littered and the percentage of moderately polluted areas decreased by 0.9% to 17.1% from 18.0% in 2016.
Minister for Communications Denis Naughten said "While I am pleased with some of the results, which are very encouraging, there is more work to be done to ensure that the environment is protected from litter.
"We need to focus our efforts to maintain the improving standards being achieved across the country. A combination of awareness, education and enforcement is required in order to successfully combat our litter challenges," he added.
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