Water Quality in 2019: An Indicator’s Report
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has published the Water Quality Indicators Report 2019 which provides an assessment on Ireland’s surface water and groundwater quality.
· Just over half of Irish surface waters are in a satisfactory condition.
· Nutrient concentrations in waters are too high and the trends are going in the wrong direction.
· Nitrate concentrations are now increasing in nearly half of our river and groundwater sites.
· Phosphate levels are increasing in a quarter of river sites.
· Concentrations of nitrate are highest in the south and south east of the country where the main source is agriculture.
· Delivering on the key objectives of Ireland’s River Basin Management Plan and targeted action at local water catchment level is key to improving water quality.
The main threat to water quality is the presence of too much nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, which come primarily from agriculture and waste water. Over one third of rivers, and a quarter of lakes are failing to meet their environmental quality standards for nutrients. Over one fifth of our groundwater, estuarine and coastal water bodies have high nitrogen concentrations.
The EPA has recently published its seventh state of the environment report. The aim of the report is to provide an overview of the current condition of Ireland’s environment and whether it is getting better or worse.
The report covers climate, air, noise, soil and land cover, nature and the freshwater and marine environment; and integrated assessments covering waste, the economy/industry, transport, energy, agriculture and the interactions between the environment and human health and wellbeing. The report found that almost 90% of our energy is generated from fossil fuels giving rise to greenhouse gases; air quality in some urban areas doesn’t meet WHO standards; nature and habitats are being damaged (85% of EU listed habitats are in unfavorable condition) and wetland bird species, such as curlew, are under threat as a breeding species.
In addition, raw sewage is being discharged to water from 35 towns and villages; pristine river water quality is being lost (from over 500 areas in the 80s to just 20 in 2020); nutrient concentrations in rivers and nutrient inputs to the marine environment are increasing; more than one million tonnes of food waste is generated each year in Ireland and littering remains a problem. Whilst the report does show Ireland going in the wrong direction, there are positives in the report that point towards what can be achieved at a local level in many areas.
The overarching message from the report is that system-wide change is now needed in how we look after our environment.
The fully report can be viewed at: https://www.epa.ie/pubs/
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