The EPA Catchments Unit held its 2018 annual Catchment Management Network Meeting on 14 November. All our local authorities and many other public bodies are invited to this meeting to talk about how to protect and improve Ireland's waters.

1. Water Quality and Us
Andy Fanning, Water Management Programme, EPA

2. Welcome
 Welcome to the 4th Annual Catchment Network Meeting
 Lots of Change,
 Lots of work done and more to do…..


3. Integrated Catchment Management

4. “You never plough a field by
turning it over in your mind.”
Irish proverb
4

5. Integrated Catchment Management

6. Water Quality and Public Health

7. Public Supplies
• High levels of disinfection by-products
• Persistent pesticide failures in some supplies
• Large No. of lead pipe connections in
properties

8. Private Supplies
“E. coli testing was not reported at 809
private water supplies serving commercial
buildings (hotels, B&Bs, pubs etc.) or
public buildings (schools, crèches,
campsites etc.). These supplies are more
likely to be contaminated with E. coli”

9. Background
 Water Quality in 2016: An Indicators
Report in June 2018 + other EPA reports
 Data from
 Local Authorities
 EPA
 Inland Fisheries Ireland
 Waterways Ireland
 Marine Institute

10. Indicators Report June 2018
 “This is the first water indicators report published by the
EPA for nearly a decade, and it is intended that this report
will be published annually “
 Indicator Reports to provide more timely information to
those involved in water quality protection and inform their
action.
 Environmental indicators represent or summarise an
aspect of the state of the environment and related human
activities.
 NOT FULL STATUS UPDATE

11. Water Indicators Report 2016
 INDICATOR 1: RIVER QUALITY
 INDICATOR 2: HIGH QUALITY RIVER SITES
 INDICATOR 3: NITRATE IN RIVERS
 INDICATOR 4: PHOSPHATE IN RIVERS
 INDICATOR 5: CANAL QUALITY
 INDICATOR 6: LAKE BIOLOGICAL QUALITY
 INDICATOR 7: TOTAL PHOSPHORUS IN LAKES
 INDICATOR 8: FISH KILLS
 INDICATOR 9: TROPHIC STATUS OF TRANSITIONAL AND COASTAL WATERS
 INDICATOR 10: NITROGEN IN TRANSITIONAL AND COASTAL WATERS
 INDICATOR 11: PHOSPHORUS IN TRANSITIONAL AND COASTAL WATERS
 INDICATOR 12: NUTRIENT INPUTS TO THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT
 INDICATOR 13: NITRATE IN GROUNDWATER
 INDICATOR 14: PHOSPHATE IN GROUNDWATER
 INDICATOR 15: BACTERIA IN GROUNDWATER
 INDICATOR 16: BATHING WATER QUALITY

12. Biological Quality of Rivers
based on Q Values
An additional 1% of river water bodies (23 water bodies)
falling below good status.

13. Nutrients in Rivers

14. Canals

15. Lake Biological Quality

16. Fish Kills downward trend

17. Estuaries

18. Riverine Inputs

19. P in Groundwater

20. Urban Waste Water Treatment

21. Main Points
 An additional 1% of river water bodies (23 water bodies) falling below good
status.
 Near eradication of serious pollution - five seriously polluted river water
bodies in 2014–2016 compared to 91 water bodies in the late 1980s;
 long-term downward trend in the number of fish kills;
 the presence of faecal contamination in over 40% of national groundwater
monitoring sites.
 the continuing presence of nutrient pollution in a quarter of our rivers and
lakes and a third of our estuaries and coastal waters.
 Drinking Water in Private Supplies still below public supplies and VTEC cases
increasing
 132 Priority Areas for Urban Waste Water Treatment

23. Integrated Catchment Management

24. Integrated Catchment Management

25. Subcatchment
• 583 subcatchments
• 70-200 km2
• 3-15 surface WBs in
each
Risk

26. Integrated Catchment Management?