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Catchment Care

Total Fund: €13m.  

Loughs Agency element: €1.4m

Partners

  • Donegal County Council – Lead (Ireland
  • Loughs Agency (N Ireland UK)
  • Aquatic Food and Biosciences Institute (N Ireland UK)
  • Inland Fisheries Ireland (Ireland
  • British Geological Survey (N Ireland UK)
  • Geological Survey of Ireland (Ireland)
  • University of Ulster (N Ireland UK)
  • Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon Borough Council (N Ireland UK)

The Catchment CARE project will contribute to the programme specific result “Percentage of cross-border freshwater bodies in cross-border river basins with good or high quality. The current baseline is 32% with the Catchment CARE project contributing to achieving the target of 65% by 2023” through the delivery of two programme specific outputs; (1) Establish 3 water quality improvement projects (2) Develop and implement 50 cross-border groundwater monitoring wells.

The aim of the project is to undertake catchment, water body and community actions which will be implemented in the Finn, Blackwater and Arney cross-border catchments. This will be achieved through 3 policy actions, 6 catchment actions and 3 community actions which have been selected based on three critical criteria; measurable impact on water quality; transferable beyond the three catchments; and contributing to a project legacy.

The project actions will contribute to the improvement of the established baseline conditions of water quality, the physical structure, and aquatic habitats while also seeking to enhance the capacity of stakeholders within the three catchment areas. The 2014 Water Framework Directive (WFD) data from NIEA and the EPA will be used to target the proposed actions at areas within these catchments where intervention will have the highest likelihood of success and contribute to achieving good ecological status (GES) of water bodies.

The actions selected will address water quality issues related to hydro-morphology, point and diffuse sources of pollution, farm nutrient management practices, characterisation and monitoring of groundwater quality, lag times in response to the implementation of measures and an economic analysis of the cost of achieving the objectives of the Water Framework Directive in the three catchments.

 

A consortium has been constructed so as to provide expertise on the main issues related to water body quality improvement such as hydro-morphology (IFI & Loughs Agency), water quality (AFBI), catchment management (UU); stakeholder engagement (ABC Council) and groundwater (BGS). In addition, Donegal County Council’s extensive expertise in project, financial and technical management of EU cross border projects (e.g. NSSHARE) ensures that the cross-border integrated management of the project and governance arrangements will deliver a robust and efficient project.

The project partners have a strong track record delivering cross-border co-ordinated protection of aquatic ecosystems including projects such as the Lough Melvin Nutrient Reduction Programme, the Blackwater TRACE Project and the NSSHARE Project led by Donegal County Council. In addition, each consortium member has established strong working relationships, at both management and operational levels, with a wide range of organisations in each jurisdiction.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

21 April 1926 to 8 September 2022