Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

As regards freshwater quality, as the Minister of State is aware, Ireland has more than 84,000 km of rivers and streams and more than 12,000 lakes. This is a significant resource but we are going backwards as a country. As he would know, the number of near-pristine river sites has declined from more than 500 in the 1980s to just 32 today. As a result, we risk losing several native species forever. I attended the presentation by the Citizens' Assembly on Biodiversity Loss this morning, as did the Minister of State. At the presentation, Dr. James Moran stated that Europe risks becoming a Continent of spoofers when it comes to biodiversity. Given that Ireland is not going forward on freshwater quality but, rather, going backwards on a lot of the measures, it risks being a country of spoofers when it comes to water quality and freshwater quality. We have multiple reports from the EPA, year after year, showing the situation getting worse.

I will provide context in that regard. The EPA report shows there has been no significant improvement of water quality of rivers and lakes and states that is largely attributable to excess nitrogen and phosphorous. Nitrogen and phosphate loadings in the marine environment have, in general, been increasing since 2013 and only 38% of estuaries have "good" status. There have been ten years of decline, when we have been going in the wrong direction. Loads of both nutrients were higher in 2022 than they were in 2021. The EPA acknowledges that although there have been improvements in some areas, they have been offset by declines in other areas. Last year, 617 river water bodies were assessed. Of them, 84 had improved but 77 had declined. Nitrogen levels are too high in 40% of rivers and 20% of estuarine and coastal water bodies, mainly in the south and south east. The EPA stated that intensive agricultural activities, including organic and inorganic fertilisers, are contributing to that. Phosphate levels are too high in 36% of lakes and 28% of rivers. This has potential effects other than those on human health and it getting into water supplies.

In our watercourses, it means an overgrowth of plants, an algae that builds up which clogs up our watercourses, uses up oxygen, harms fish and other aquatic life, and kills off life in our river courses. This is extremely serious. This is happening in the context of our water supplies and watercourses being under intensive pressure, especially with climate change. Research by Maynooth University has indicated that by the 2050s, we will see summer reductions of between 20% and 28% in precipitation in Ireland that will particularly affect the southern and eastern coasts, and which by 2080s could increase to 30% to 40%. That is going to have a particular impact on our hydrology, soil moisture, storage, ground water recharge and storage and our fresh watercourses. It will have a profound effect. It is in that context and under that level of pressure that it is extremely serious for us not to be going in the right direction in terms of our fresh watercourses. We are also seeing the issues around rising sea temperatures, the real concern and worry it is causing for people working in fisheries and the impact that is having on their livelihoods.

What we need to do is take much more robust action on nitrates. We need to rely on science to determine what level of nitrates are acceptable in each water body. That is a must. We need to have a very strong river basin management plan. It has been mentioned that the draft plan is very weak and that it lacks the ambition, measures, and targets required to restore our waters to good health. How can we have all our waters protected and restored to good status by 2027, as we are required to do under the EU's water framework directive, when we do not have proper targets and timelines to get there in our river basin management plan? That is absolutely essential.

Sewage is the main source of pollution in 208 water bodies and yet the proposed river basin management plan does not include measures to fix that by the 2027 deadline. That shows a lack of seriousness and a lack of will to tackle water quality issues. It is time for this to be addressed with the seriousness that is needed.

What we also need to have is a change of mindset and to get way from thinking of these things simply as standards we need to meet because we are required to do so under our obligations or by the European Union. We need to make these changes because it is very much in our interests to do so. Strangling our waters and taking a wrecking ball to biodiversity in nature is against our interests. To protect ourselves, we must protect nature, the environment and biodiversity. In addition, we must have very strong support and incentives for farmers and food producers. They are at the front line in terms of biodiversity and in helping to manage our watercourses. Incentives and policy, which in the past have driven agricultural intensification in the wrong direction, need to be urgently re-orientated towards sustainable practices. Good practices must be rewarded, and not punished. The primary responsibility to do that lies with the State and the Government. It cannot simply be a case of saying that farmers need to do more. Food producers have a role to play but all the incentives have been pushing them in the wrong direction and the State has a key responsibility in that.

This Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, report must be a wake-up call. We need to act urgently if we are going to have any chance of meeting the directive by 2027.

See this speech in context