South Dublin County Council has confirmed that it is to engage a firm of engineers to investigate 28 illegal landfill sites in the area.
The council said the contractors will inspect the sites and recommend prevention methods and advise on possible legal action.
Fine Gael said the 28 sites were merely "the tip of the iceberg" and called for increased finances for county councils to fight illegal dumping.
"Local authorities, in most cases, cannot even respond to reports of suspected dumping by carrying out and an inspection, much less take action to enforce regulations," the party’s environment spokeswoman, Ms Olivia Mitchell TD said.