2023 EPA Water Conference

Home 2023 EPA Water Conference

The EPA Water Conference was held on 14 and 15 June 2023 in Salthill, Galway. There were sessions on: Water quality and policy; Agriculture; Health, Water and emerging issues; The future of water.

2023 EPA Water Conference – Conference Programme

Download the 2023 EPA Water Conference Programme

2023 EPA Water Conference – Videos

Session 1: Water Quality and Policy

1. Welcome and opening address	Dr Eimear Cotter Director, Office of Evidence and Assessment, EPA
2. Ministerial address	Malcolm Noonan T.D. Minister of State for the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
3. Water quality indicators and the evidence base	Mary Gurrie Programme Manager, Office of Evidence and Assessment, EPA
4. A stakeholder vision for water	Dr Matt Crowe Chairperson, An Fóram Uisce
5. Development of catchment management plan templates	Dr Bernie White Regional Coordinator, Local Authority Waters Programme
6. Local authority climate action plans: Our water future	Kevin Motherway Regional Coordinator for the Atlantic Seaboard South Climate Action Regional Office led by Cork County Council

Session 2: Agriculture

7. Policy landscape for Irish agriculture	Bill Callanan Chief Inspector, Department Agriculture, Food and Marine
8. Visioning sustainable & resilient agriculture: known pieces of the confounding puzzle	Dr David Styles Associate Professor in Agricultural Sustainability, University of Galway
9. Moderated discussion on agriculture and water quality	Moderated by RTE Journalist Philip Boucher Hayes. Bill Callinan and Dr David Styles were joined by three other people for a discussion on agriculture: Farmer’s perspective – Dennis Drennan, Chair, ICMSA Farm and Rural Affairs Committee Farming stakeholder engagement perspective – Noel Meehan Programme Manager, Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme, Teagasc Environmental perspective – Dr Elaine McGoff, Natural Environment Officer, An Taisce

Session 3: Health, Water and Emerging Issues

10. National septic tank inspection report	Stephen McCarthy Inspector, Office of Environmental Enforcement, EPA
11. VTEC in private wells	Dr Liam Burke Assistant Professor in Bacteriology, University of Galway
12. Microplastics: From source to sink in freshwater ecosystems	Dr Róisín Nash Senior Lecturer and Researcher, ATU
13. Chemicals in water	Alan Stephens Senior Manager, Office of Radiation Protection and Environmental Monitoring, EPA

Session 4: The Future of Water

14. Ireland’s oceans and the impact of climate change on ecosystems	Dr Caroline Cusack Ocean Observation Team Leader, Marine Institute
15. Investing for the future in a changing climate	Maria O’Dwyer Head of Asset Management, Uisce Éireann
16. Learnings and recommendations from the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss	Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shuilleabháin Chairperson, Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss
17. Closing conference address	Dr Eimear Cotter Director, Office of Evidence and Assessment, EPA

Who is involved?
Quite simply, everyone in Ireland has a role to play. This can be from something as simple as making sure you don’t pollute your local stream, or a local community working together to establish a Rivers Trust to enhance the rivers and lakes in their area, to a Government Department or Agency helping a Minister implement a new policy to help protect and enhance all our water bodies.

This website has been developed and is maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency, and is a collaboration between the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Local Authority Waters Programme.

Local Authority Waters Programme

The Local Authority Waters Programme coordinates the efforts of local authorities and other public bodies in the implementation of the River Basin Management Plan, and supports local community and stakeholder involvement in managing our natural waters, for everyone’s benefit.

Environmental Protection Agency

The EPA is responsible for coordinating the monitoring, assessment and reporting on the status of our 4,842 water bodies, looking at trends and changes, determining which waterbodies are at risk and what could be causing this, and drafting environmental objectives for each.

Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage

The Department is responsible for making sure that the right policies, regulations and resources are in place to implement the Water Framework Directive, and developing a River Basin Management Plan and Programme of Measures to protect and restore our waters.