Ireland's State of the Environment Report 2024

191 Chapter 8: Water Water 1. Introduction Water is essential to life. Our rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal waters and groundwaters sustain our livelihoods, food production and industries, support our tourism and recreational activities, and are an integral part of our culture and heritage. As well as being critically important to humans, water is just as essential for the many species that call Ireland’s waters home. From the tiniest river insects to kingfishers and otters, these creatures rely on clean water and healthy aquatic habitats for their survival. This precious resource is under threat from a range of human activities that cause pollution and damage to our waters and its habitats, and from climate change. The freshwater pearl mussel, Ireland’s longest living animal, which depends on clean water, is facing extinction. By safeguarding our waters, we can also protect the delicate ecosystems that rely on them, allowing them to build resilience and adapt to the effects of climate change. The European Union (EU) Water Framework Directive (WFD; 2000/60/EC) and our national water policy aim to protect clean waters and restore degraded waters. However, despite these efforts, Ireland’s water quality is not as good as it should be. The Environmental Protection Agency’s latest water quality reports (EPA, 2022, 2023a, 2024a) show that water quality is not as good as it should be and that any improvements made in recent years are being offset by declines elsewhere. Overall, the proportion of waters in satisfactory condition has decreased since assessments under the WFD began in 2007. We must protect and maintain the health of our waters. Without clean and healthy waters, we cannot hope to sustain a vibrant society or a thriving aquatic environment with diverse species and habitats. This chapter sets out the current state of our groundwaters, rivers, lakes, estuaries, lagoons and nearshore coastal waters. It looks at the pressures affecting water quality and quantity. It examines the responses that are in place and planned to address water pollution. Issues that affect the marine environment are reviewed in Chapter 9. Habitat quality and species diversity in surface waters are discussed in Chapter 7, and some key water and health issues (drinking water, bathing water, shellfish waters, waste waters, algal blooms and hazardous chemical substances) are considered in Chapter 14. 2. Current situation Ireland has an extensive water quality monitoring programme, undertaken by the EPA, local authorities, Inland Fisheries Ireland, Waterways Ireland and the Marine Institute. The EPA classifies and reports on the quality of surface waters (rivers, lakes, estuaries and coastal waters) and groundwaters every 3 years under the approach set out in the WFD (Figure 8.1). Surface waters are classified as being in high, good, moderate, poor or bad ecological status. Groundwaters are classed as good or poor. The overall aim for water quality, as required by the WFD, is to achieve good or high ecological status and good chemical status in all water bodies. Waters in high and good ecological status show only minor or slight changes from natural conditions and represent healthy and diverse ecosystems. We are required to protect these from deterioration. Waters in less than good status (moderate, poor or bad) range from moderately to severely damaged by pollution or habitat degradation. We need to restore these. Finny River, Co. Mayo

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