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Nitrous oxide canisters littering streets and parks 'sparking curiosity' in children

Experts say the are ‘everywhere’. What should you do if you find one?

LARGE CYLINDRICAL CANISTERS have become a common sight littering many public areas in recent years.

But what actually are they?

These canisters were once filled with nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, used by teens and young people for short highs.

But for young children, these bright colourful tubes are “sparking curiosity”. 

Experts told The Journal Investigates that this leads to kids picking them up and checking to see if there is any gas inside.

They frequently litter our streets and public parks. This creates “a kind of permissive attitude around nitrous oxide”, according to Trevor Bissett, a coordinator with the Clondalkin Drug and Alcohol Task Force.

“They’re everywhere,” he told us. “The larger canisters have become a big issue in the area in terms of the litter and [the] visibility of them as well.”

Children as young as 12 are picking them up to check if there is any gas left, according to reports received by the Clondalkin Drug and Alcohol Task Force.

For those who use it, the drug can have devastating consequences.

Inhaling gas straight from the canister can lead to devastating frostbite burns, which is why balloons are typically used for transferring the gas.

Nitrous oxide use can also lead to paralysis and suffocation, health experts told us.

IMG-20250610-WA0000 Mark Ward TD said that discarded nitrous oxide canisters are a massive problem. Mark Ward TD Mark Ward TD

Investigations like this don’t happen without your support… Impactful investigative reporting is powered by people like you.

Sinn Féin TD Mark Ward said that ease of access and popularity with young people is contributing to the litter problem:

“Walk to any housing state or any public park in Dublin, and you will see discarded nitrous oxide canisters lying around the place…this is an issue in Cork. It’s an issue in Limerick [and] right across the state.”

Our health service is feeling the impact of this. Last year, a HSE report found that nitrous oxide ranked third on the reported substance use from teenagers referred to the service, behind alcohol and cannabis.

But Ward said that this is “only the tip of the iceberg”. He added:

“Most of the problematic use goes unnoticed and people don’t present for help.”

Don’t throw canisters in the bin

Discarding these canisters properly, particularly the larger ones, can be difficult.

Last year, Revenue put out a tender to dispose of the huge number of canisters – over 480,000 since 2020 – it has seized due to suspected illegitimate use.

It contracted a waste management company to “carry out the transport, storage, and disposal of seized nitrous oxide canisters”, a Revenue spokesperson told us.

Ward also said that these canisters can cause damage to machines when being processed through the domestic waste system.

So, what should you do if you find one on the street?

Don’t throw it in the bin. Instead, Ward advises, people can dispose of them at local recycling centres, or by contacting their local authority to remove them.

Earlier today, The Journal Investigates revealed how these large canisters of nitrous oxide could be bought by Irish shoppers on popular online sites, which is likely contributing to this problem.

Our investigative team found it for sale on Amazon and classified ads sites, showcasing just how easy it can be for anyone, including children, to obtain it.

The Journal Investigates

Reporter: Conor O’Carroll • Editor: Maria Delaney • Social Media: Cliodhna Travers • Main Image Design: Lorcan O’Reilly

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    Mute Keith DArcy
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 10:10 AM

    I half expected to find out how Gangnam Style changed YouTube forever. Should have known better, yet another click phishing article.

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    Mute Leopold Dedalus
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 10:19 AM

    Do you know what phishing is?

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    Mute Keith DArcy
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 12:07 PM

    I do, thanks for asking. It’s a means to acquire information by deception.

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    Mute Leopold Dedalus
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 12:55 PM

    And what information has this article acquired from you by you clicking into it?

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    Mute Colin C
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 1:03 PM

    Someone give him back his click, please.

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    Mute Andy Patton
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 1:07 PM

    This isn’t phishing, Leopold – it’s click-baiting.

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    Mute Leopold Dedalus
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 1:11 PM

    That’s what I was getting at Andy. I was just appreciating the irony of someone using deceptive wording to complain about an article using deceptive wording.

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    Mute Tom Red
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 9:22 AM

    Joan Burton getting pegged with the water balloon must be catching up by now????….

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    Mute JJ O Riordan
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 9:33 AM

    Cam we have one story on the journal without some gobsh!te mentioning the government, or Irish water, or protests in the comments?

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    Mute JJ O Riordan
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 9:34 AM

    Can* the joys of spellchecker on a phone.

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    Mute Tap Solny
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 9:42 AM

    The small mind can only try to focus on one issue at a time. The small mind cannot even comprehend the one issue that it is trying to focus on.

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    Mute Andy Lane
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 9:48 AM

    I blame the liberal, neo-socialist lefty media. And the feminazis.

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    Mute JJ O Riordan
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 9:55 AM

    For the comments or the spellchecker haha

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    Mute dstaffx
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 10:28 AM

    Remember when Garth Brooks was mentioned in every article comment section. Oh the pain.

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    Mute ChocSaltyBallz
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 11:55 AM

    Not so smart phone

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    Mute J. Dunn
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 10:35 AM

    Here’s how Facebook helped catch a thug.
    Here’s how Gangnam Style changed Youtube.
    I know the Journal tend toward spells of thematic saturation. Is this to be a week/month of website articles containing ~150 words unrelated to the title’s claim?

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    Mute Andrew Doyle
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 10:30 AM

    By change YouTube forever do they mean increase the number of advertisements??

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    Mute John Horan
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 11:40 AM

    2^32 is 4 billion, so they must be using signed ints, just in case a video is watched a negative number of times?

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    Mute Colin C
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 1:05 PM

    If even 50% of journal commentators knew what a signed int was, the world would be a better place.

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    Mute J. Dunn
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 4:26 PM

    I don’t know what it is but I know what you can do with it.

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    Mute Colin C
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 5:26 PM

    There there.

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    Mute J
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 11:31 AM

    “640k ought to be enough for anybody”
    -Bill Gates

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    Mute Leopold Dedalus
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 12:00 PM

    “I’ve said some stupid things and some wrong things, but not that. No one involved in computers would ever say that a certain amount of memory is enough for all time … I keep bumping into that silly quotation attributed to me that says 640 K of memory is enough. There’s never a citation; the quotation just floats like a rumor, repeated again and again. ”

    - Bill Gates.

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    Mute J
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 12:23 PM

    “Yes I know he never said that”
    -J

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    Mute Spoddgy
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 11:18 AM

    What did we all learn? That young people are idiots and that people that are hitting past 35 or more should know better than try impress them! Turk out!

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    Mute Lastpost
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    Dec 3rd 2014, 2:32 PM

    South Korean tripe, maybe they think we have a problem with drinking, but we all know they have a problem with music, no talent

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