Catchment News

Home News Donation of EPA hydrometric equipment to Engineers Without Borders

Donation of EPA hydrometric equipment to Engineers Without Borders

The EPA upgraded their surface water hydrometric stations and groundwater level monitoring sites to telemetric data loggers during 2016 and 2017.

As a result, the EPA had a large number of obsolete water level monitoring devices for which we no longer had a use. In line with the Agency’s sustainability goals, specifically to promote reuse and recycling, it was decided to investigate if an aid organisation could be found who could put the old equipment to good use. In March 2017, the EPA and local authorities donated a consignment of obsolete water level monitoring equipment to Engineers without Borders (EWB).

We have recently received an update regarding the reuse of this equipment. Some of the units donated are now being installed in Arua, Northern Uganda for water supply monitoring in refugee camps. EWB’s regional partner organisation, Malteser International, have developed over 30 water supply boreholes at refugee settlements in the region. The local authorities and the UN have made it mandatory to monitor the water level in all water supply boreholes to ensure water is abstracted from the aquifers sustainably. The devices donated by the EPA have been repurposed to provide this monitoring capability in these boreholes. It is great to think that this equipment now has a fresh lease of life providing water managers in Uganda with a means of ensuring the sustainable development of their groundwater resource.

This reuse of obsolete equipment is a good example of the EPA showing leadership in reusing resources and contributing towards a wider, global circular economy. We will keep you posted with future updates.

Conor Quinlan, EPA Hydrometrics and Groundwater Section

Learn more:

Engineers without Borders Ireland www.ewb-ireland.org

About author

EPA Catchments Unit

Administrator

The EPA Catchments Unit is based in Dublin, and the team is involved with catchment science, chemistry, ecology, hydromorphology, modelling, Geographic Information Systems and planning. We work with the wider EPA, all of our local authorities, the Local Authority Waters and Communities Office, the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, and other public bodies and Departments to ensure we have the best available data and information about our catchments.

Who is involved?
Quite simply, everyone in Ireland has a role to play. This can be from something as simple as making sure you don’t pollute your local stream, or a local community working together to establish a Rivers Trust to enhance the rivers and lakes in their area, to a Government Department or Agency helping a Minister implement a new policy to help protect and enhance all our water bodies.

This website has been developed and is maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency, and is a collaboration between the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Local Authority Waters Programme.

Local Authority Waters Programme

The Local Authority Waters Programme coordinates the efforts of local authorities and other public bodies in the implementation of the River Basin Management Plan, and supports local community and stakeholder involvement in managing our natural waters, for everyone’s benefit.

Environmental Protection Agency

The EPA is responsible for coordinating the monitoring, assessment and reporting on the status of our 4,842 water bodies, looking at trends and changes, determining which waterbodies are at risk and what could be causing this, and drafting environmental objectives for each.

Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage

The Department is responsible for making sure that the right policies, regulations and resources are in place to implement the Water Framework Directive, and developing a River Basin Management Plan and Programme of Measures to protect and restore our waters.