September edition of Science Spin now available

The latest edition of Science Spin, Ireland’s own science magazine edited by Tom Kennedy doesn’t have anything specific on water this issue but is well worth a look anyhow.  There is a very interesting article by Tom looking at the levels of metal contamination in Dublin soils, with As, Pb and Hg all showing surprising high concentrations in the topsoil.  This is quite surpsing given the relatively low level of industrialization. The digital version is available via this link.

Today is Word Water Day!

The theme of this year’s World Water Day is ‘Water for cities: responding to the urban challenge’.

Word Water Day 22nd March 2011

The theme of this year’s World Water Day is ‘Water for cities: responding to the urban challenge’. The aim is to focus attention of all stakeholders to the challenge of urban water management to deal with the impact of rapid urban population growth, industrialization and uncertainties caused by climate change, conflicts and natural disasters on urban water systems. Link

Massive investment for flood protection in England

The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (defra) announced 39 new flood and coastal defence projects throughout England last month, 21 one of these are to reduce to risk of flooding protecting over 13,000 households. This is part of an enormous programme involving nearly 300 projects which are managing the risk of flooding costing £521 million in the coming year. Full datails of the projects can be accessed here.

Water Quality in Ireland 2007-2009

The season for National reports continues with the latest  report on the surveillance programme of Irish water quality dealing with rivers, lakes, estuaries and groundwaters has been published by the Environmental Protection Agency. The report Water Quality in Ireland 2007-2009 can be downloaded from the EPA website.

The programme monitors some 13,118 km of river channel comprising 1,700 rivers, as well as 222 lakes, 89 estuarine and coastal sites and 211 groundwater monitoring stations. The problem with all such surveillance programmes is that not all water bodies can be included so there are many gaps in what is being monitored. However, having said that, the overall conclusion is that water quality in Ireland is being maintained but according to the EPA themselves the quality of Irish water quality remains only just above the European average which is disappointing. The reports shows that 70% of river channel is of good quality status in accordance with the Water Framework Directive although the remainder are polluted to varying degrees. Overall, 85% of groundwaters were also of good status and 90% of lake area is in a satisfactory condition. The EPA remain committed to improving water quality in Ireland.

Living Sustainably: A complete guide to surviving a changing planet

A new course has been launched for Michaelmas term 2011 Living Sustainably: A complete guide to surviving a changing planet. The 5ECTS module is part of Trinity College’s Broad Curriculum programme where interdisciplinary courses allow experts from one discipline offer a unique perspective for students in different disciplines on contemporary issues. Professor Nick Gray has been working on the problems of sustainability for over three decades and looks at the facts behind current global problems and how the individual and community can make a difference. The course is supported by its own blog.