Towns and villages in the Co Louth foot-and-mouth exclusion zone will not be allowed to participate in this year's Tidy Towns Competition, the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, has said.
The decision will affect Dundalk town, Blackrock and Knockbridge, all of which have previously entered.
Restrictions during the competition will operate for all participants, including warnings not to use materials from farms such as manure during preparations, and the use of disinfectant mats when meetings take place. A brochure outlining restrictions will be included in information sent out to applicants.
The Minister said the competition was given approval after consultation with the expert committees on foot-and-mouth.
This year's Tidy Towns Competition formally began yesterday, with applications being accepted until April 27th. Judging will begin in June and July and the results will be announced in September.
Prize money will total £80,000 and the competition includes a new category award for best Tidy Town in a Gaeltacht area as well as an award to promote bilingualism in non-Gaeltacht towns. Between 10 and 20 new entrants are expected from Gaeltacht areas this year.
The top award includes a prize of £10,000 which last year went to Kenmare, Co Kerry.
More than 700 communities are expected to participate in the competition, which has been running for almost 50 years.
SuperValu, the main sponsor of the competition, will contribute about £1.6 million to the event over the years 2000 to 2002.
The Minister said it was important for communities to get involved and to encourage young people to participate.
Information on the National Tidy Towns Competition is available on the Department of Environment website under the planning and development section (www.environ.ie) or by calling the Tidy Towns Unit at the Department on 01-8882300.