Primary responsibility for the monitoring, management, protection and improvement of water quality is assigned to local authorities under the Local Government (Water Pollution) Acts and related legislation. The Environmental Protection Agency, through its Office of Environmental Enforcement, exercises general supervision in relation to the performance of these functions by local authorities.
In terms of overall national policy, the River Basin Management Plan 2018 - 2021 outlines what Ireland is doing to protect and improve our waters. This is supported, amongst other measures, by a local authority shared service known as the Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO); by Irish Water’s Strategic Funding Plan 2019-2024; and by new capital investment for rural water services.
My Department is currently preparing the third River Basin Management Plan for Ireland, to cover the period 2022 – 2027. A key commitment in the Programme for Government, the publication of a new strengthened River Basin Management Plan will help deliver a robust and effective policy regarding water services and water quality, along with advancing Ireland’s commitment to the implementation of the Water Framework Directive.
Building on the work of the second-cycle, this plan will again describe the main pressures and activities affecting water status. The plan will also set out the environmental objectives to be achieved up to 2027 and identify the measures needed to achieve these objectives. It is on this basis that I have instructed officials to examine the report referred to in detail and ensure that appropriate measures are included in the next plan to address all significant pressures impacting on our water bodies, including those found on the Blackwater and Boyne river system.
A draft of the River Basin Management Plan is currently undergoing a public consultation, which is due to close on 31 March 2022. Necessary revisions will then be made to take account of the public consultation process and engagement with appropriate stakeholders, before the publication of the final plan later this year.
This draft plan includes a number of proposed Areas for Action, including the Blackwater Lower in the Meath County Council area and the Blackwater Upper in the Cavan County Council area. These proposed areas were selected through a collaborative workshop process at each Regional Operational Committee, the membership of which includes key stakeholders such as local authorities, the Environmental Protection Agency and Inland Fisheries Ireland.
To address waste water issues, Irish Water will continue to deliver its capital investment programme. While progress is being made by Irish Water in reducing the number of waste water plants on the Environmental Protection Agency’s priority action list, continued and sustained attention is needed to reduce the impact from insufficiently treated waste water discharges and to meet our Water Framework Directive objectives. In this regard officials from my Department are continuing to engage with Irish Water as part of the River Basin Management Plan making process to ensure a shared understanding of national priorities.
As part of Budget 2022, I secured funding of over €1.57 billion to support water services. This includes €1.459 billion in respect of domestic water services provision by Irish Water. The overall investment will deliver significant improvements in our public water and waste water services, support improved water supplies right across Ireland, including rural Ireland, and support a range of programmes delivering improved water quality in our rivers, lakes and marine area. It is key to addressing Ireland's shortcomings in water and waste water infrastructure including compliance with the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive.
A copy of the draft River Basin Management Plan, along with further supporting documentation including details on how to make a submission, is available from the consultation page on my Department’s website at www.gov.ie/draftRBMP.