Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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460. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he is satisfied with the water quality of a river in Counties Mayo and Sligo and the monitoring and inspection plan of the Environmental Protection Agency for this river. [2983/16]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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The Moy estuary is monitored as part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) national Water Framework Directive monitoring programme. Under this programme the EPA assesses general physico-chemical parameters (nutrients, oxygen, temperature, salinity) and biological quality elements (phytoplankton, macroalgae and angiosperms). In addition, Inland Fisheries Ireland assesses fish in the estuary and the Marine Institute assesses benthic invertebrate communities in the adjacent Killala Bay coastal water.  The current status of the estuary is moderate (slightly polluted) due to elevated levels of opportunistic macroalgae (seaweeds) with other elements in the ecology being satisfactory. Killala Bay is currently classified as being at good status. There are two designated bathing waters in this area: Ross Beach which is currently classed as being at excellent status and Enniscrone Beach which is at good status.

The EPA and local authorities are currently assisting my Department with the preparation of the second cycle of River Basin Management Plans which are due to be completed by the end of 2017. As part of this work, outstanding issues regarding water quality in the Moy and its estuary will be taken into account in drafting measures to both protect and improve water quality.