Funding worth €500,000 has been made available for targeted drinking water source protection actions in group water scheme catchments.
The funding is part of the National Federation of Group Water Schemes (NFGWS) source protection strategy.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine said today (Thursday, March 25), that agriculture and the minimisation of losses from nutrients and pesticides are considered a “vital element in the protection of group water schemes”.
“This provides agriculture with the opportunity to deliver targeted measures to address agricultural pressures while enabling the development of future programmes,” the Department of Agriculture said.
The initiative will also be used to trial new approaches which, if successful, could be adopted more generally to assist Ireland in meeting its water quality and climate/biodiversity objectives.
The department said it will use any findings from the initiative to assist and inform the development of future agri-environment actions.
The funding will be focused on seven group scheme catchments that fall within, or close to current priority areas for action, as defined in the River Basin Management Plan (RBMP).
According to the department, these catchments are largely impacted by agricultural pressures and the funding announced will help implement targeted measures, such as the creation of smart buffer zones in targeted areas along water courses; the promotion of alternatives to pesticide use; and the roll-out of education initiatives highlighting the impacts of agricultural practices.