Catchment News

Home News Updated draft Catchment Assessments published by EPA

Updated draft Catchment Assessments published by EPA

The EPA has published an updated draft Catchment Assessment for each of our 46 catchments. These assessments provide an overview of the situation in the catchment, draw comparison between Cycle 2 and Cycle 3, and will help support the draft River Basin Management Plan 2022-2027 public consultation process.

The EPA has published 46 updated Catchment Assessments. These assessments provide an overview of the situation in the catchment, draw comparison between Cycle 2 and Cycle 3, and will help support the draft River Basin Management Plan 2022-2027 consultation process.

Once the consultation process is completed the report will be finalised to reflect any changes and comments made as a result of the consultation process.

Each Catchment Assessment includes the following:

Status and Risk categories of all waterbodies
Details on protected areas
Significant issues and Significant Pressures
Source load apportionment modelling for each catchment and load reduction assessments for nutrients where applicable
An overview of the 2nd Cycle Areas for Action and a list of proposed 3rd Cycle Areas for Action

These characterisation assessments are largely based on information available to the end of 2018, including the WFD Status Assessment for 2013-2018. Protected Area assessments are based on water quality information up to 2018 for Natura 2000 and Salmonid Waters; 2019 for Drinking Water; and 2020 for Nutrient Sensitive Areas and Bathing Waters.

Source Load Apportionment Modelling is now available for every catchment: these charts show estimated proportions of N & P from each sector in the Slaney & Wexford Harbour Catchment.

How to access these Catchment Assessments

Go to the catchments.ie Data page: https://stg.catchments.ie/data/
Type in the name of the catchment you are looking for in the Data search box, or click on the catchment you are interested in on the map of Ireland

Once the page for your catchment is opened, you will see a link to the PDF of the Catchment Assessment

Paddy Morris, EPA Catchments Unit

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.