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Chapter 4
Water
This chapter reviews the current status of surface waters
and groundwaters in Ireland. The main drivers and pressures
are identified and a prognosis on outcomes is presented with
a path towards achieving the goals of the Water Framework
Directive (WFD), which is now halfway through its first full
implementation cycle.
In summary, the assessment of Ireland’s water resources shows that:
n
71% of river channel is at high or good status
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46.6% of lakes monitored are at high or good status
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46% of transitional and coastal waters are at high or good status
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85.6% of the area of groundwater aquifers is at good status.
Water quality in Ireland compares favourably with that in other
EU countries. However, similar to many other EU countries, Ireland
still faces considerable challenges to meet the objectives of the WFD
within the required timeframes. The three main challenges for water
quality management are to eliminate serious pollution associated
with point sources; to tackle diffuse pollution; and to use the full
range of legislative measures in an integrated way to achieve better
water quality. A key aspect is that focusing measures on rivers, where
monitoring has identified particular causes of pollution, will help
reduce pollutant loading to lakes and coastal waters as well as
improving river quality.
In addressing these challenges, improvements are also required in
the governance and administrative systems for water management in
Ireland to ensure that they are optimised to support the delivery of
Ireland’s obligations under the WFD and other water legislation.