A lot of work is to be done to get Westmeath’s rivers and lakes from ‘moderate’ up to ‘good’ status in accordance with new EU regulations, according to a presentation on the Shannon International River Basin District (IRBD ) received by councillors this week.
According to project co-ordinator of the Shannon IRBD project, Enda Thompson, “the overall picture for the county is bleak” at present. Over 80 per cent of Westmeath’s waters have been identified as in need of restoration, all of which need to be upgraded to ‘good’ status under the EU’s Water Framework Directive. Just 8 per cent of Westmeath’s waters are currently achieving ‘high’ overall ecological status. Furthermore, over half of the county’s lakes (52 per cent ) are in need of restoration.
The key objectives of the EU framework are aimed at maintaining ‘high’ status of waters where it exists, preventing any deterioration in the existing status of waters, and achieving at least ‘good’ status in relation to all waters in the Shannon IRBD by 2015.
A draft management plan for the Shannon river basin district is to be made available to the public next month. The plan will investigate the causes of problems with the quality of rivers, identify actions that must be taken, and outline a plan for the future management of the river basin.
A programme of measures to tackle the deficiencies will be identified in the plan, which are to include a number of basic measures to implement the EU directives, such as protecting drinking water sources and preventing pollution, as well as supplementary measures such as upgrading wastewater treatment and establishing codes of practice for forestry activities.
The Shannon IRBD is the largest in Ireland at more than 18,000 square kilometres in area. It covers the natural drainage basin of the river Shannon from its source in Cavan to the tip of the Dingle Peninsula, and flows through 18 different local authority areas.
The Shannon IRBD Project has been established by the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government to assist the local authorities to implement the EU Water Framework Directive, and is funded through the National Development Plan. It is led by Limerick County Council, and all 18 local authorities, including Westmeath County Council, are actively participating in the project.
