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Farm and Landscape measures for Agriculture (FLAG) Map – Updated 2025

The EPA’s Farm and Landscape Measures for Agriculture (FLAG) map is a vital resource designed to help improve water quality by providing farmers and landholders with information that will help them understand their local water quality and where action needs to be taken. The 2025 update builds on previous versions (formally the Targeting Agricultural Measures map) and integrates the latest monitoring data and scientific assessments.

Farm and Landscape measures for Agriculture mapping tool

Farm and Landscape measures for Agriculture Mapping Tool

The FLAG mapping tool has information under these menu headings:

Status & Monitoring – View current water quality status and monitoring station locations
Targeting Agricultural Measures – Explore two key layers:
- Farm and Landscape Measures for Agriculture – shows pollutants in waterbodies impacted by agriculture.
- River Agricultural Pressures – highlights where agriculture is a significant pressure on water quality.
Nitrogen / Freely Draining Soils – Identify areas at risk of nitrogen loss due to well-drained soils
Phosphorus / Heavy Soils – Locate areas prone to phosphorus and sediment runoff from heavy soils

A screenshot of the EPA Farm and Landscape measures for Agriculture mapping tool

Targeting Agricultural Measures

The Farm and Landscape measures for Agriculture layer (found under the Targeting Agricultural Measures tab) shows what the issue/pollutant is in waterbodies that are impacted by agriculture.

Where agricultural measures are needed to improve water quality, one or more colour flags indicate the types of water quality issues in that area. This helps farmers in these areas to focus on actions that are likely to have the best water quality results.

The map has white for ‘Protect’ in areas where there are no agricultural significant pressures on water quality; in these areas it is still important that everyone takes action to continue to protect water quality.

Farm and Landscape measures for Agriculture

What’s New in the 2025 Update

Incorporates 2022–2024 chemistry monitoring data
Updated methodology for identifying ammonium/farmyard pollution (threshold increased to 0.065 mg/l)
Slight increase in flagged waterbodies due to improved data and local authority input
Areas with phosphorus/sediment issues remain consistent with previous assessments

FLAG Map leaflet

A downloadable flyer is available to help farmers and advisors understand how to use the FLAG map in practice. It includes:

A visual guide to help you navigate the FLAG mapping tool
Clear explanations of the different map layers and what they show
Links to support schemes and advisory services to help take action

EPA-FLAG-Map-Guide Download

Take Action

The video below from the Irish Farmers Association and Teagasc shows actions farmers can take to improve water quality on their farm.

Apply manure, slurry and fertiliser correctly.
Introduce an extended buffer zone.
Locate water troughs away from waterways.
Implement a nutrient management plan.
Introduce mixed species & clover to your grass swards.

You can learn more here: SmartFarming | Sources and Solutions – Link Between Our Soils & Water Quality

A Handbook of Source Protection and Mitigation Actions for Farming

The National Federation of Group Water Schemes has also produced this very useful and detailed guide to on-farm actions to improve water quality: NFGWS_handbook_farming-mitigation-actionsFebruary2021.

About author

EPA Catchments Unit

Administrator

The EPA Catchments Unit is based in Dublin, and the team is involved with catchment science, chemistry, ecology, hydromorphology, modelling, Geographic Information Systems and planning. We work with the wider EPA, all of our local authorities, the Local Authority Waters and Communities Office, the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, and other public bodies and Departments to ensure we have the best available data and information about our catchments.

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.