Environmental Group Coastwatch Hosts Vital Event on Preventing Pollution in Coastal Waters

Environmental group Coastwatch held an event on coastal water quality protection this week in Dún Laoghaire, joined by volunteers, experts, sea swimmers, and local and national authorities. Cllr. Jim O'Leary, Cathaoirleach, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council welcomed participants to the event in the Town Hall, which was preceded in the morning by a field trip to Dún Laoghaire Harbour marina to learn about a Native Oyster Restoration Project there, and followed with an afternoon field trip to Sandycove and 40Ft for a demonstration of sea step and slipway cleaning methods.

Cllr. Jim O’Leary, Cathaoirleach, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council said:

“Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is proud to host this important workshop, which brings together experts, community voices and authorities to address pollution risks. Our coastal environment and marine biodiversity are such an important part of our County, and we must work together to ensure its long-term protection.”

The event, themed “Preventing Oil and Chemical Pollution”, is the second of three such workshops organised by Coastwatch as part of a Horizon Europe project called More4Nature. The EU project aims to bring about transformative change in environmental protection by including informed citizens and communities as key actors in collaborative environmental compliance assurance. 

In support of the event, Frank Curran, Chief Executive, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council said:

“This workshop aligns with our commitment to the protection of biodiversity and our coastal environment. By strengthening pollution response mechanisms and enhancing public engagement, we can create a more resilient and thriving marine ecosystem.”  

Karin Dubsky, Coastwatch coordinator said:

“We made great progress today, building upon the water pollution issues and alert system ideas discussed in our January workshop in Trinity College. There is recognition that there is huge scope for citizen science monitoring and also for pollution alerts which have enough location and content information to enable and support faster authority reaction to pollution incidents. The cooperation with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and staff engagement across water, nature and shore management was really outstanding and a special thanks goes to them, the Green Ocean Foundation and Bunzl Ireland and the volunteers, experts, sea swimmers, and local and national authorities who joined in.”

Two project field trips were linked to the workshop. The Native Oyster Restoration Project led by David Lawlor of the Green Ocean Foundation highlighted how much quality and trust in harbour water quality one has to have for this bivalve to survive and breed. The second field trip to Sandycove 40ft bathing area surface audit and demonstration by Bunzl Ireland’s team was to mark the start of a wider interest trial with delegates from other local authorities joining too. The aim is to keep intertidal surfaces slip free without using hazardous chemicals. Trial plots using strong natural bristle brushes and water jet methods were proposed.

In January, Coastwatch held the first such event in Trinity College, with a focus on agricultural and sewage pollution. The third and final workshop will be held on World Water Day, 22 March, and will tie-together learnings into a report with recommendations.

One goal is to explore how we could improve pollution prevention and alert systems like the EPA’s “See It? Say It!” app. After the panel discussions today, which included speakers from Inland Fisheries Ireland,  EPA, LAWPRO – a national shared service working on behalf of all 31 local authorities in Ireland, Dún Laoghaire Harbour, and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, participants people gathered around tables to evaluate existing alert systems and to then to imagine and make recommendations for new community alert systems.