merrion street

Mr. Alan Kelly T.D., Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, today (18 November, 2015) announced that there is only one month left to comment on the Significant Water Management Issues to be addressed in Ireland during the second cycle of River Basin Management Plans. These Plans will set out the environmental goals to be achieved by the end of 2021 and they outline the actions required to deliver them.

The Minister launched this public consultation in June 2015 and the deadline for receipt of submissions is 18 December 2015. Copies of the consultation document can be downloaded on the Department’s website at www.environ.ie.

In issuing this reminder, the Minister said, “I want to hear from anyone who has an interest in the protection of our environmental waters in order to ensure that the most important issues are identified and addressed during the next cycle of River Basin Management Plans. Any suggestions received in response to this consultation will be taken into account in preparing the draft plans, which will subsequently be issued for public consultation towards the end of 2016.”

Submissions can be made by email to waterq@environ.ie or by sending a written response to Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government at WFD SWMI Consultation, Water Quality Section, Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, Newtown Road, Wexford.

ENDS


Notes for the Editor: River Basin Management Planning and the Water Framework Directive

The Water Framework Directive is EU legislation that was adopted in 2000. It requires Member States to manage their water resource on an integrated basis so as to achieve at least ‘good’ ecological status and to avoid deterioration in the status of any waters. The means to achieve good status must be set out in River Basin Management Plans.

River Basin Management Plans describe the measures planned to protect and improve Ireland’s water environment covering rivers, lakes, groundwater, transitional (estuaries) and coastal waters. River Basin Management Plans are the end result of a process that starts with identifying the waters and key water management issues within a river basin district. Thereafter, the status of those waters is assessed and classified (based on a monitoring programme), environmental objectives for the water bodies within the district are established and a programme of measures to achieve those objectives is compiled.

River Basin Management Planning takes an integrated approach to the protection, improvement and sustainable management of the water environment. The planning process revolves around a six year planning cycle of action and review so that every six years a revised river basin management plan is produced.

Since 2003, implementation of the Water Framework Directive has been undertaken in Ireland under the leadership of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. The first plans were adopted by the local authorities and approved by the Minister for the Environment in 2010.

Second Cycle of River Basin Management Plans
Preparations for the second cycle of plans, covering the period up to 2021, are now underway. This phase of public consultation will give an interim overview of the significant water management issues to be addressed in Ireland. Following this consultation decisions will be taken by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government on what are the most significant issues to be addressed in the River Basin Management Plan. Draft River Basin Management Plans will be presented for further public consultation at the end of 2016.