New EEA report: Bathing water management in Europe – successes and challenges
The share of bathing sites with excellent water quality in Europe has increased from 53 % in 1991 to 85 […]
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Catchment News
New EEA report: Agricultural policy needs to secure stronger environmental improvements for water in Europe
Reducing pressures from agriculture is key to improving the status of Europe’s rivers, lakes, transitional, coastal waters and seas as […]
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SMARTER_BufferZ – better buffer zones, with the right measure in the right place
SMARTER_BufferZ is a project that aims to ensure optimal targeting and management of riparian buffers for the effective management of […]
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Ireland’s National Water Framework Directive Monitoring Programme, 2019-2021
This document presents Ireland’s national WFD monitoring programme for surface and groundwater bodies. The programme aims to provide a coherent […]
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The quality of drinking water in private water supplies is not good enough and is putting health at risk warns EPA
11 February 2020: The EPA today released the Drinking Water Quality in Private Supplies 2019 report. One million people in Ireland get […]
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Urban Planning and Nature Based Surface Water Management: from theory to practice
On November 9 2020 the Local Authority Waters Programme organised a webinar to explore, discuss and learn about the potential […]
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National Hydrology Bulletin for January 2021
The National Hydrology Bulletin for January 2021 is now available on the EPA website. Following another relatively wet month, river […]
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March 22 & 23: Reimagining Irish Rivers: working with nature – free online conference
On the 22 and 23 March a host of exciting talks looking after our rivers will be given by experts […]
Read MoreWho 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.