Ireland’s Water Future

Bernie O’Flaherty, Regional Co-ordinator, LAWCO on behalf of the LAWCO team

www.watersandcommunities.ie boflaherty@lawco.ie

EPA National Water Event 2017

The Local Authority Waters and Communities Office

Recap: LAWCO & who we are and what we do Communication, Catchments & Collaboration

Looking forward: new governance & new regional structures Feedback from engaging with & listening to communities around the country Rivers Trust & options for partnership working Challenges ahead Building on the momentum

LAWCO: Who we are

• The EU (Water Policy) Regulations 2014 placed new obligations on local Authorities in coordinating catchment management and public participation elements of the Water Framework Directive.

• The Local Authorities Waters and Communities Office (LAWCO) was set up in 2016 as a local authority Shared Service and funded by DHPCLG

• LAWCO is part of a new approach; using Integrated Catchment Management (ICM)to manage our waters

The Local Authority Waters and Communities Office

12 No. Community Waters Officers

Led by Kilkenny & Tipperary Matt Shortt (Director of Service) Carol McCarthy (Coordinated Sampling programme) 3 Regional Coordinators Bernie O’Flaherty Fran Igoe Ray Spain 3 Support Officers

Funding – Sheevaun Thompson Marketing & Communication – Alan Walsh IT, Administration & Research – Michael Pollard

Visit our stand here today

Communication & Engagement

• Increase awareness and promote community engagement

• Reconnect people & waters - focus on local waters

• New conversation around the value of water - benefits of healthy waters & healthy catchments, Natural capital, catchment services … supporting our economy

• Water is a fragile resource that needs to be protected (largely from humans!)

Collaboration

• Multiple organisations with direct or indirect involvement in water management

• Promote and facilitate collaboration between public bodies and communities

• Explore opportunities to

collaborate e.g The Heritage Council

Water Heritage Day 2017 Sunday August 27th

Community input & local knowledge will feed into the Regional Committees through the Waters and

Communities Office

Clearer governance structures

New Regional Structures Supported by LAWCO

• 5 Regional Committees chaired by CEO – Review recommended work areas for investigative assessments

from regional interagency workshops (Q2 & Q3 2017)

– Approve regional work programme (Q3, 2017)

– Allocate ‘implementation resource’ when available

• 5 Regional operational sub-committees to be set up from

July 17. – Develop a work programme on priority work areas for

Investigative Assessment (34 proposed for Border Area)

– Provide a platform for interagency collaboration to regional and local level

– Build & share knowledge & expertise

Information Sharing, Networking & promoting Citizen Science

Catchments.ie: a collaboration between EPA, DHPCLG & LAWCO

Catchment Management Network

Community Engagement around the country

Starting out: Target Groups

Local Development Companies (LEADER & FLAGS)

National Federation of Group Water Schemes

Tidy Towns

Public Participation Networks

Angling Groups

NGOs

Farming Community…..

& listening to communities

‘I never thought about our river’ attendee at Networking for Nature Tidy Towns Event

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Losing link with river

Lack of surveillance and prosecution

Erosion of river banks

Water Quality Issues

Pollution & flytipping

Navigation

Decrease in fish stock and biodiversity

Flooding

No swimming/lifeguards

Education & awareness raising

Invasive Species

Sewage

River Access

Silt, gravel and vegetation

Tunnelling and trees in river

Governance of Rivers - too many Agencies

Lack of joined up thinking

Most commonly cited issues raised at River Suir Public Meetings 2016 (n=16)

No of meetings issue raised 340 attendees in total

CWO: Jimmy Mc Veigh

A large number of agencies, groups and individuals in one room with an interest or role in water management

• Inland Fisheries Ireland • DAFM • Forest Service • OPW • NPWS • Donegal County Council • Donegal Tourism Ltd • DCC Harbour Masters, • Donegal Trails Office • EPA • IFA & Irish Natura & Hill Farmers

Association • Inishowen Development Partnership • Inishowen Tourism • And more….

Excellent Support from agencies Opportunity to exchange information

LAWCO

Ardfinnan Paddlers

Waterford CoCo – Heritage Officer

Tipp CoCo

Carrick Adminstrator

Tipp CoCo

Environment

Clonmel Canoe Club

Clonmel Canoe Club

Blueway Dev Officer

Tipp CoCo

Sports Partnership

NPWS

Tipp CoCo

Inland Fisheries

Outside of Picture

Tipp CoCo Heritage Officer

Community participation in biosecurity planning

‘Turning the Tide Towards protecting and enhancing our

finest natural resource’ article from Mayo Now Magazine, Jan 2017

Photo: Launch of Moy Catchment Association

“It was great to see the agencies and LA’s all together in one room and to be able to speak with them in an informal setting. We need more of this..”. Community group member

Meitheal Dothra faoi gheasa an Dúlra - A turbulent beauty is born! – Dodder Action

Galway Waterways Association ‘we have 5 kms of waterways that run through the city…..they are overgrown with trees, choked with aquatic vegetation and full of unsightly rubbish. Working together we can create something truly magnificent for our city. The Capital of Culture designation gives us the incentive to do it’ Phil James, chairman of Galway Waterways Association

CWO: Catherine Seale with a group of Ladybirds (junior Girl Guides) at Ross Lough, Moycullen

Galway’s Little people & Big Ideas

• Community Water officers

• 115 meetings planned

• 92 completed to date

• Average attendance 11

• 116 submissions collected to

date

Public Consultation on the draft River Basin Management Plan

‘I’ve waited 35 years for this day’ attendee at River Funshion meeting

• For those who feel they have no voice:

• Passion turns to frustration when problems remain unresolved (e.g Barriers to fish passage)

• queries and complaints unanswered

• Legacy of lack of trust

Communities and elected members appreciate the public consultation process and the fact that the Waters and Communities Office has been set up

Agriculture: Farmer feedback on current policy

Single Farm Payment & land eligibility rules a disincentive for riparian area fenced buffers Dichotomy between farming communities • Intensification v more

traditional farming

Poor understanding around issues such as pesticides in drinking water

‘Its all about water now’ Hill farmer, Cooley peninsula

Positive developments

• DAFM Water Forum

• National Dairy Sustainability Forum

• Teagasc: knowledge exchange programme….

• Many farmers are tuned in to environmental issues - need more information – Management of river corridors

– Fallen trees

– Drainage guidelines

• Farmers have requested more constructive engagement

Can we do more to support farmers role as custodians of the environment?

Creating linkages

The Waters and Communities Office has facilitated linking: • Community Groups with a common purpose

– Caherdaniel knotweed project is looking at non-chemical approaches to treating knotweed

– Comharchumann Dún Chaoin is taking a more traditional chemical treatment approach, but is considering piloting the most successful technique from the Caherdaniel project on a tributary to allow for a comparison of effectiveness

– Both Communities will re-instate native riparian vegetation/wildlife corridor after treatment upon guidance from ourselves

• Linking these Community Groups to Third Level students – community groups with the capacity to take on fourth year Wildlife Biology students who could contribute to the overall aims of the projects

‘I feel so energised…’ participant overheard leaving the Dunleer meeting,

Dundalk Bay Rivers Project – 7 meetings, 4 counties, 120 participants

Community Creating a Vision for Dundalk Bay Rivers (Using the

RIPPLE process developed by Ballinderry Rivers Trust)

Vision themes:

• Education • Water Quality • Flooding & Climate change • Recreation and Tourism • Access & infrastructure • Protecting and improving

habitats and biodiversity

Supporting the Development of River Trusts in Ireland

• LAWCO have the services of Mark Horton, All Ireland Rivers Trust

Development Officer, 4 days per month Start-up advice and support

Documentation (Document templates to help achieve Charity Status etc )

Technical support etc

• Supported by DHPCLG

• Workshop on The Formation of River Trusts in Ireland, July 2016 supported by LAWCO & Rivers Trust UK

• A further event for Rivers Trusts being planned for 2018, (NIEA support so far)

• Rivers Trust represented on the National Water Forum (ROI)

28

Interest in trust development

Vartry River

Fane/Dundalk Bay

Galway Bay/Area

River Lee

Bandon River

Agivey & Macosquin Rivers

River Roe

Boyne River

Purpose

1. To conserve, protect, rehabilitate and improve

2. To advance the education of the public

What are Rivers Trusts? Charities Catchment based approach Evidence based action Partnership working

Catchment scale partnerships

• Rivers Trust Model –benefit from UK experience & River Restoration Centre’s online resources

• Local Development Companies, LEADER Projects

– IRD Duhallow (success in delivery of LIFE projects) – Capacity building, bespoke training – Studies – Cooperation Projects (Inter LAG)

• Landscape Partnerships, a NI Model, funded under the Heritage Lottery ‘to conserve and enhance some of the UK’s most treasured landscapes’

Catchment Management

A ‘wicked’ problem? Source: Catchment Science 2011, Integration Science and Governance for Catchment

Management, L Smith, SOAS, K Hiscock, UEA, & K Ported, Cornell

Challenges • Inter-related problems,

water quality, abstraction and flood risk

• Pollution sources and numerous, dispersed and with uncertain pathways..

• Problems are multi-sectoral • Monitoring & regulation are

costly • Polluting activities produce

food, rural jobs, tourist income…

Need for: • Broad societal response • Collaborative management

and multi-agency partnership working

• Integration of science and governance

• The right combination of regulation, advice, land use measures, incentives and voluntary action

Building on the momentum What’s happening and what needs to happen

• New structures now at National & Regional level

• EPA, LA and multi agency Catchment workshops – getting the science right

• Genuine interest from practitioners & management

• Additional implementation resource in pipeline

• Community appetite for information and involvement

Need to • Build trust & relationships • Be creative • Support communities to avoid

community fatigue • Adequate funding for collaborative

ICM projects

Catchment Newsletter Issue 5 Spring 2017 ICM Research – how to make it happen

We plan to make a difference, Can you?

Tus maith, leath na hoibre!

Need leadership & champions

– science community

– within each organisation

– at local, regional and national level

– community champions

Photo from NIW ‘Bag It Bin It’

‘It’s people who save rivers not plans..’

EDEN project, Donal Daly, EPA

Fowley’s Falls Co Leitrim