project - EIP-AGRI Operational Group
The Duncannon Blue Flag Farming & Communities Scheme
The Duncannon Blue Flag Farming & Communities Scheme
Objectives
The project aims to contribute to the recovery of the Blue Flag status at Duncannon beach, Co. Wexford
To achieve this goal, the project will pursue the following specific objectives:
- Sustainably restore, protect and enhance the quality of the bathing and riverine waters at Duncannon by reducing pollution from rural agricultural and domestic sources whilst also protecting farm incomes;
- Develop an effective model for future sustainable management of similar catchments &
- Foster positive relations between the farmers and householders in the catchment area and the local natural landscape, particularly the water environment and associated biodiversity.
Objectives
The project aims to contribute to the recovery of the Blue Flag status at Duncannon beach, Co. Wexford
To achieve this goal, the project will pursue the following specific objectives:
- Sustainably restore, protect and enhance the quality of the bathing and riverine waters at Duncannon by reducing pollution from rural agricultural and domestic sources whilst also protecting farm incomes;
- Develop an effective model for future sustainable management of similar catchments &
- Foster positive relations between the farmers and householders in the catchment area and the local natural landscape, particularly the water environment and associated biodiversity.
Activities
The project activities are:
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Creating farm-specific ‘Pollution Potential Zone’ (PPZ) plans for each farm.
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Providing farmers with a full-time ‘Sustainability Manager’ who will help participant farmers achieve the objectives of the project by guiding them through their PPZ plans and by developing and delivering a number of knowledge exchange initiatives.
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Monitoring farm practice change and water quality in the wider catchment area
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Creating a local awareness programme for domestic waste water treatment systems &
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Developing community wide engagement with the project with the objective of creating a sense of local ownership, responsibility & appreciation for the local water environment.
Activities
The project activities are:
-
Creating farm-specific ‘Pollution Potential Zone’ (PPZ) plans for each farm.
-
Providing farmers with a full-time ‘Sustainability Manager’ who will help participant farmers achieve the objectives of the project by guiding them through their PPZ plans and by developing and delivering a number of knowledge exchange initiatives.
-
Monitoring farm practice change and water quality in the wider catchment area
-
Creating a local awareness programme for domestic waste water treatment systems &
-
Developing community wide engagement with the project with the objective of creating a sense of local ownership, responsibility & appreciation for the local water environment.
Contexte
The elevated bacteria levels of bathing water quality at Duncannon beach together with the loss of its ‘Blue Flag’ status of environmental excellence in 2007 have had a major impact on the tourism potential of the area. For example, bathing prohibition notices had to be enforced as recent as August 2017, during the week of the Hooked KiteFest, due to excessive levels of Intestinal Enterococci (IE) in the bathing water.
Additional information
The expected results and practical recommendations of the project are:
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Improvement in the bacterial, chemical and ecological quality of the two coastal streams at Duncannon beach.
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Improvement in the bathing water quality at Duncannon beach.
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A greater sense of local ownership, responsibility and appreciation for the local water environment.
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A template for the development of farm-specific pollution potential zone ‘PPZ’ maps and how they could be used as education and engagement tools to show farmers in a simple visual way, the water-quality risks specific to their farms.
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Demonstration of a range of innovative and cost-effective farm management practices for water-quality protection.
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A template for a water-quality focused, results-based, reward scheme which could be used to improve water-quality in particularly sensitive catchments.
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A template for effectively communicating and sharing local water-quality results with the local community and the benefits of same.
A template for establishing local ‘citizen scientist’ groups whereby local community members monitor the quality of their local streams and develop a pollution alert system
Project details
- Main funding source
- Rural development 2014-2020 for Operational Groups
- Rural Development Programme
- 2014IE06RDNP001 Ireland - Rural Development Programme (National)
Emplacement
- Main geographical location
- South-East (IE)
€ 550000
Total budget
Total contributions from EAFRD, national co-financing, additional national financing and other financing.
1 Practice Abstracts
The elevated bacteria levels of bathing water quality at Duncannon beach together with the loss of its ‘Blue Flag’ status of environmental excellence in 2007 have had a major impact on the tourism potential of the area. For example, bathing prohibition notices had to be enforced as recent as August 2017, during the week of the Hooked KiteFest, due to excessive levels of Intestinal Enterococci (IE) in the bathing water. This main aim of this scheme is to improve the bacterial quality of the two coastal streams that flow onto Duncannon beach, by reducing pollution from agricultural and domestic sources. This should contribute to the recovery and long-term the retention of the Blue Flag status at Duncannon beach. The scheme focuses in particular on addressing rural point sources of faecal (and associated phosphorus) pollution. However, it does this within a framework of integrated catchment management, whereby a range of pollution sources and types are considered in unison, for multiple benefits in an integrated, holistic manner.
The elevated bacteria levels of bathing water quality at Duncannon beach together with the loss of its ‘Blue Flag’ status of environmental excellence in 2007 have had a major impact on the tourism potential of the area. For example, bathing prohibition notices had to be enforced as recent as August 2017, during the week of the Hooked KiteFest, due to excessive levels of Intestinal Enterococci (IE) in the bathing water. This main aim of this scheme is to improve the bacterial quality of the two coastal streams that flow onto Duncannon beach, by reducing pollution from agricultural and domestic sources. This should contribute to the recovery and long-term the retention of the Blue Flag status at Duncannon beach. The scheme focuses in particular on addressing rural point sources of faecal (and associated phosphorus) pollution. However, it does this within a framework of integrated catchment management, whereby a range of pollution sources and types are considered in unison, for multiple benefits in an integrated, holistic manner.
Contacts
Project coordinator
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Wexford County Council
Project coordinator
Project partners
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Barry Agricultural Consultants
Project partner
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Bordbia
Project partner
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Glanbia
Project partner
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Teagasc Advisor
Project partner
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Teagasc Research
Project partner