Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) also found in its annual survey that despite a fall in bottles and cans being dumped on streets, it was not enough to reduce littler levels nationwide.
A survey of 40 towns and cities across Ireland highlighted Naas as the cleanest town and Galway the cleanest city.
Dublin’s north inner city was bottom of the pile and the only area deemed “seriously littered”.
According to inspectors, “vast quantities of loose food and alcohol-related litter had been discarded” near Emmet Road in Dublin.
While Sherrard Street Upper had “bags of domestic rubbish, the contents of which have been ripped open and scattered about”.
Another blackspot was Crinian Strand, a short stretch of residential housing, with large household items such as mattresses and furniture “discarded along the pavement, along with at least a dozen black sacks of rubbish – the contents of which were being scavenged by seagulls”.
The capital’s city centre was only one position above and described as “littered”, with the anti-refuse group saying this highlights the need for a proper enforcement on a bin bag ban
“These findings strengthen the case for the ban on bag bins in Dublin City,” said Conor Horgan of IBAL.
“We’ve been saying for years that the use of bags for waste collection has been an impediment to progress in the capital on a number of fronts.
“The ban can bring about a step change, but its impact will hinge on proper enforcement.”
The ban came into force in the south inner city last week, with an extension north of the Liffey planned for the summer.
Last year saw a further fall in the number of areas within cities and towns deemed “litter blackspots”, which IBAL says suggests local authorities have been generally more effective in tackling urban dumping and targeting problem sites identified.
The survey also revealed a near-50pc fall in the prevalence of plastic bottles and cans in the more than 500 sites monitored since the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) was introduced last year.
“We are definitely seeing cans and bottles disappear from our streets, which is very welcome – not only are they unsightly, but the bottles contribute to the very real problem of plastic pollution,” Mr Horgan said.
“However, it is clear from our survey that people continue to discard a wide range of litter types, with flagrant disregard for their surroundings.”
The DRS was one of a number of structural measures broached by the last government as part of its environmental agenda, with knock-on benefits in terms of litter.
A ban on disposable vapes and a coffee cup levy were others.
Sweet wrappers and fast-food wrappers were the most common litter types, ahead of plastic bags and coffee cups, which were present in over 20pc of sites.
Naas finished top of the rankings for the third time in four years, with An Taisce, which conduct the surveys on behalf of IBAL, praising the Kildare town on an achievement “that didn’t happen overnight”.
