New control for major rivers

The successful introduction of the catchment management approach to controlling pollution in some of Ireland's most important rivers and lakes is being extended to the Liffey, Boyne, and Suir catchments at a cost of £3.4 million.

The Irish concept, which is attracting favour with the EU and is likely to be extended to other member-states, is already in place in relation to Lough Derg, Lough Ree, and Lough Leane.

It entails more extensive evaluation of potential sources of pollution, scaled-up monitoring of waters, and strategies tailored to the particular circumstances of each catchment.

The extension of the programme brings to £6.5 million the amount being invested in the catchment monitoring and management concept. A total of £123 million is being invested in the six catchments when account is taken of new sewage-treatment projects, including phosphate-reduction facilities being supported by the EU Cohesion Fund.

"These monitoring-management systems will, in addition to assessing the impact of sewage investment, also identify and assess the effects of . . .diffuse sources of pollution, including that from agriculture," the Minister of State, Mr Dan Wallace, said.

The benefits of the approach were already beginning to pay off, with indications that water quality on Lough Derg was improving, Mr Wallace said.

There have been 27 fresh water fish kills so far this year, with indications there will be nothing on the scale of 1997 when there were some 50 major fish kills, he said.

New phosphate limits combined with nutrient management planning overseen by local authorities and the EPA would mean an incremental improvement in water quality over the next 10 years, while there was every indication that even stricter standards would be set by the end of that period, the Minister said.

The environmental group, Voice, said it hoped that introducing new monitoring and management systems for the Liffey, Boyne, and Suir would not prove to be a hindrance to taking immediate action to stop pollution.