Dr. Eimear Cotter:

I thank Deputy O'Sullivan for the question. The EPA implements the national water quality monitoring programme. As part of this we can see that 54% of our waters are in good condition. This means that 46% of our waters are not. Agriculture is one of the most significant pressures on our water quality, impacting 1,000 water bodies. This is mainly due to nitrates and phosphorus coming off agricultural land into our waters. These issues are particularly acute in the east and south east of the country, where Deputy O'Sullivan has mentioned, down-----