Latest Water
Research 285: Nutrient Dynamics and Ecophysiology of Opportunistic Macroalgal Blooms in Irish Estuaries and Coastal Bays (Sea-MAT)
Authors: Ricardo Bermejo, Svenja Heesch, Moya O’Donnell, Nessa Golden, Michéal MacMonagail, Maeve Edwards, Edna Curley, Owen Fenton, Eve Daly and Liam Morrison, August 2019
Year: 2019
The Sea-MAT project aimed to understand the role of local environmental conditions in the development of green tides in Ireland.
Research 267: High-resolution Gridded Datasets of Hydro-climate Indices for Ireland
Authors: Christopher Werner, Paul Nolan and Owen Naughton, February 2019
Year: 2019
This report describes the application of numerical weather prediction (NWP) simulations to develop high-quality, long-term, gridded climate datasets of hydro-climate variables for Ireland, covering the period 1981–2016.
Research 261: A National Roadmap for Water Stewardship in Industry and Agriculture in Ireland
Authors: Ken Stockil, Niall Keely, Maria Valle and Shane Merritt, October 2018
Year: 2018
Following extensive desk research and a process of national and international consultation, this report captures key lessons for Ireland in relation to water stewardship and outlines an integrated roadmap towards establishing the country as a leader in the adoption of water stewardship best practice at both national and local levels in the years ahead.
Research 255: Optimal design and operation of small-scale wastewater treatment plants: the Irish case
Authors: Lorna Fitzsimons, Greg McNamara, Edelle Doherty and Eoghan Clifford, August 2018
Year: 2018
There are many variables which must be considered when designing and operating a wastewater treatment system. The key objectives of this research were to develop software tools to assist in the selection and management of wastewater treatment systems, with a specific focus on small wastewater treatment plants in Ireland.
Research 253: Desludging Rates and Mechanisms for Domestic Wastewater Treatment System Sludges in Ireland
Authors: Laurence Gill, Joanne Mac Mahon, Jan Knappe, Salem Gharbia and Francesco Pilla, May 2018
Year: 2018
This study has produced a set of guidelines for owners of septic tanks and packaged treatment systems to help to address the lack of understanding among homeowners of how their domestic wastewater treatment systems operate and to encourage responsible operation and maintenance.
Research 251: The Impact of On-site Domestic Wastewater Effluent on Rivers and Wells
Authors: Laurence Gill, Vincent O’Flaherty, Bruce Misstear, Laura Brophy, Christopher Fennell, Donata Dubber, David O’Connell, Kathryn Kilroy, Maria Barrett, Paul Johnston, Francesco Pilla and Phillip Geary, May 2018
Year: 2018
This research project evaluated the impact of domestic wastewater treatment system (DWWTS) effluent as a health hazard to consumers of groundwater from private wells and also a source of nutrient water pollution to surface water in small catchments.
Research 249: Catchment Management Support Tools for Characterisation and Evaluation of Programme of Measures
Authors: Eva M. Mockler and Michael Bruen, May 2018
Year: 2018
Nutrient enrichment and eutrophication can negatively impact on freshwater ecosystems, estuarine and coastal waters. As a result of improvements in nutrient management and regulation, there has been a large reduction in total phosphorus, total ammonia and total nitrogen emissions from Irish catchments in recent decades.
Research 243: Role of Passive Sampling in Screening and Monitoring of New and Emerging Chemicals
Authors: Fiona Regan, Lisa Jones, Jenny Ronan, Denis Crowley, Evin McGovern and Brendan McHugh, April 2018
Year: 2018
Passive sampling (PS) techniques are rapidly developing as very cost-effective state-of-the-art tools for identifying and measuring ultra-trace micropollutants in water.
Research 240: Technologies for Monitoring, Detecting and Treating Overflows from Urban Wastewater Networks
Authors: David Morgan, Liwen Xiao and Aonghus McNabola, March 2018
Year: 2018
In Ireland, most urban areas are drained by combined sewer systems, which convey wastewater and stormwater in a single pipe. During rainfall the capacity of combined sewers may be exceeded, leading to untreated discharges to receiving waters via storm water overflows (SWOs), which are a source of microbial pathogens.
Research 239: Valuing Ireland’s Coastal, Marine and Estuarine Ecosystem Services
Authors: Daniel Norton, Stephen Hynes and John Boyd, January 2018
Year: 2018
This technical report demonstrates the data sources and methods that can be used to estimate the value of a number of coastal and marine ecosystem service benefits.
Research 234 - One-step Drinking Water Treatment Using Filtration and Nanostructured Composites
Authors: Anne Morrissey, Declan McGlade, Kieran Nolan, Brid Quilty and Jenny Lawler, December 2017
Year: 2017
This report provides a summary of the findings of the research on the design, development and testing of a novel drinking water treatment system using a combination of filtration and nanostructured composites for the removal of inorganic, organic and microbiological contaminants from water.
Research 232: Demand for Water-Based Leisure Activity: the Benefits of Good Water Quality
Authors: John Curtis and Stephen Hynes, November 2017
Year: 2017
The objective of this research was to determine how water-based recreational activities in Ireland are affected by differences in water quality across recreational sites.
Research 231: Assessment of Natural Organic Matter (NOM) and Ptaquiloside in Irish Waters
Authors: Connie O’Driscoll, Liwen Xiao, Xinmin Zhan, Bruce Misstear and Francesco Pilla, November 2017
Year: 2017
Ireland has an unacceptably high number of drinking water supplies that exceed the parametric value of 100 μg L-1 for total trihalomethanes (THMs) and has been reporting the highest non-compliance with respect to total THMs in drinking water across the 27 EU Member States.
Research 230: Sediment Flux – Measurement, Impacts, Mitigation and Implications for River Management in Ireland
Authors: Michael Bruen, Anna Rymszewicz, John O’Sullivan, Jonathan Turner, Damian Lawler, Elizabeth Conroy and Mary Kelly-Quinn, November 2017
Year: 2017
The SILTFLUX project addressed three major objectives related to sediment pollution in rivers.
Research 229: Developing the Concept of Catchment Services for Progress Towards Integrated Water Management (Extra TIMe)
Authors: Alec Rolston, Eleanor Jennings, Suzanne Linnane and David Getty, November 2017
Year: 2017
The benefits and disservices received by people and ecosystems within catchments are called catchment services and disservices. Their delivery can be influenced by multiple factors including climate, legislative/policy and social (demographic) change.
Research 219: Characterising the Biological Communities of Rare River Types
Authors: Edel Hannigan and Mary Kelly-Quinn, July 2017
Year: 2017
Research Report 219 Characterising the Biological Communities of Rare River Types
Research 218: Assessment of the Hydrometric Network and Hydrodynamic Behaviour of Small Irish Catchments
Authors: Ahmed Elssidig Nasr and Paul Hynds, June 2017
Year: 2017
Research Report 218 on the Assessment of the Hydrometric Network and Hydrodynamic Behaviour of Small Irish Catchments
Research 216: Thermodynamic Modelling of Energy Recovery Options from Digestate at Wastewater Treatment Plants
Authors: Karla Dussan and Rory Monaghan, June 2017
Year: 2017
EPA Research 216 detailing Thermodynamic Modelling of Energy Recovery Options from Digestate at Wastewater Treatment Plants
Research 214: Suitability of Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants for the Treatment of Landfill Leachate
Authors: Raymond B. Brennan, Mark G. Healy, Liam Morrison, Stephen Hynes, Daniel Norton and Eoghan Clifford, June 2017
Year: 2017
Research 214 on the Suitability of Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants for the Treatment of Landfill Leachate
Research 210: Scope, Fate, Risks and Impacts of Microplastic Pollution in Irish Freshwater Systems
Authors: Anne Marie Mahon, Rick Officer, Róisín Nash and Ian O’Connor, April 2017
Year: 2017
Research report 210 on the Scope, Fate, Risks and Impacts of Microplastic Pollution in Irish Freshwater Systems