Sustainable Water Network (SWAN)

Dirty Business Shocking real-life drama about the muck in our water and a corporate scandal

Have you watched the excellent TV series #DirtyBusiness on the awful state of sewage pollution & its health effects in the UK? 🤮Watch at the link below.

If you're worried about swimming in dangerous pollution in Ireland read this: swanireland.ie/2026/01/wild...

www.channel4.com/programmes/d...

SWAN staff are busy with Fair Seas advocating for action on Marine Protected Areas legislation. With attendance at the @greenparty.ie  Convention and the European Ocean Days events. 

#FairSeas #30x30

World Ocean Day Conference 2026 Welcome Join us in Cork for the second Fair Seas Conference in 2026. We will be kicking off World Ocean Week 2026 with a splash in Cork Harbour.  We will again bring ocean advocates, the fishing commu...

The 2nd Fair Seas Conference is making a splash in Cork Harbour to kick off World Ocean Week 2026 🌊

📍 Cork City Hall
📅 Wednesday, June 3rd 2026

Join ocean advocates, fishers, govt & industry to shape the next steps for Marine Protected Areas.

Book👉 tinyurl.com/FairSeasConference2026

#FairSeas

EPA suspends North Cork Creameries from discharging wastewater for the 2nd time in 3 months.

The discharges "threaten to cause an immediate adverse effect on the environment, in particular the ecological and chemical water quality of the River Allow."

www.farmersjournal.ie/more/climate...

Farmers warn of slurry storage issues after wet weather Farmers in the east of the country hit by significant wet weather in recent weeks have said they are struggling with slurry storage capacity, as they are unable to spread slurry on saturated ground.

"We're going to have slurry flowing off yards potentially" "flowing off land where slurry is spread into our lakes, rivers, & estuaries."

'the situation with slurry capacity "really underscores the lack of resilience in our system."'- @elainemcgoff.bsky.social

www.rte.ie/news/2026/02...

Government failing to consider how key policies are damaging climate, says UN expert Plans for LNG, Dublin Airport passenger cap and data-centre expansion ‘need scrutiny’

“Economic revenue must not come at the expense of protecting the environment and human rights”

‘The country’s presidency of the European Union from July to December this year is a chance to show leadership’

- UN Special Rapporteur fact finding mission in Ireland

www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

🚨Powerful polluting industries and reckless lawmakers are tearing down our main EU water law. ☠️

For the past 25 years, the law has driven the cleanup of our rivers and lakes. 💙💧

We need to stop them. 🛑

Sign our petition to say #HandsOffNature ✋👇
https://f.mtr.cool/idwqdgltoj

Rolling back environmental regulation is the ultimate act of self-harm Across the world, right-wing political forces are working to dismantle decades of environmental and social progress, writes Ciaran Brennan

“Rolling back environmental regulation is the ultimate act of self-harm”

“the question should be asked — if our environmental regulation is so onerous, how come our environment, nature and biodiversity are in such a perilous state?”

www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...

Call for Tender for Research on Forestry and the Water Framework Directive - Sustainable Water Network 6The Sustainable Water Network (SWAN) seeks a researcher to conduct a desk-based research project on forestry as a significant water management issue in Ireland, titled ‘Impacts of forestry on Ireland...

🚨Call for Tender🚨

We're looking for a researcher to conduct a desk-based research project on the impacts of forestry on Ireland’s water resources & implications for meeting the Water Framework Directive.
swanireland.ie/about-us/wor...

Apply by 16th March!🗓️

EU flag in water

💧 Good to see EU states have backed new rules on tackling harmful chemicals in our waters including PFAS, some pesticides & pharmaceuticals.

👎Not good that exemptions for short-term damage & shifting pollution elsewhere have been put in EU's main water law.

Read more: eeb.org/en/eu-counci...

Rivers must be monitored continuously to prevent ‘repeat of Blackwater fish kill’ Valuable time lost in raising alert on the incident, notes review by European Union scientists

.@EU_ScienceHub review of the Blackwater fish kill finds 42,000 fish dead, cause still unknown, & a dangerous detection gap. We need real‑time monitoring, a major fish kill action plan & stronger enforcement

"reforms long overdue” @salmonwatchireland.bsky.social

www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

27 EU leaders. In a castle. Deciding which protections to cut for polluter profit 😡

180,000+ people already said: #HandsOffNature ✊

Join us in telling EU leaders that we will not sacrifice our future for corporate profits
👉 www.environmentalpillar.ie/hands-off-na...

The Taoiseach is meeting EU leaders today to 'highlight the need to streamline & simplify our regulatory framework'.

However, this push for 'simplification' is weakening EU environmental laws, including the EU's water law. 🌊🦦

Sign our petition to say #HandsOffNature ✋
f.mtr.cool/idwqdgltoj

European flag on water

🌊 Ireland needs an ambitious #EUOceanAct to secure a healthy, thriving ocean for all.

We've made a submission on this, urging that it becomes a legally binding Regulation with clear, timebound targets for ocean protection, restoration & sustainable use.

Have your say!

ec.europa.eu/info/law/bet...

Ireland in the storms: Flood barriers won't save us if we keep draining the land After flooding in the past, successive governments promised protections, but instead, doubled down on dredging and delayed land-use reform, leaving communities exposed, writes Pádraic Fogarty.

“restoring ecosystems is the cheapest, quickest & most effective way that we can protect ourselves from the coming onslaught.

The communities of Enniscorthy & other affected areas deserve nothing less”

Reform the arterial drainage act & restore our wetlands now!
www.thejournal.ie/readme/storm...

Environmental breakdown isn’t a distant possibility – it’s a threat to world stability The message is clear: climate change should be prioritised as a security crisis, not just an environmental one

“‘Nature is the foundation of national security.’”

“The most cost-effective and impactful way to protect our collective future is through large-scale restoration, which can only happen with a truly steadfast commitment of long-term funding”

www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Sadhbh O'Neill: Should Ireland introduce a legal 'duty of care' for rainwater? In the Netherlands and Germany, nature-based solutions are the first step in flood prevention. In Ireland, they’re the last

Green infrastructure solutions to flooding "are not only better for the environment, they cost a great deal less. And they tend to appreciate, rather than depreciate in value."

"dredging, sea walls & river realignment are expensive, and damaging to ecosystems"

www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2026...

💥 Big polluters and reckless politicians are coming for Europe’s water protections.

For 25 years, the EU’s water law has kept our rivers and lakes alive — now they want to take it apart. 🪓

Help defend your water. Add your name to our petition. ✋💧
#HandsOffNature 👉 https://f.mtr.cool/idwqdgltoj

Number of wetland birds visiting Ireland in winter has declined dramatically in last 30 years The majority of wader species have declined since the 1990s.

Number of wetland birds visiting Ireland in winter has declined dramatically in the last 30 years

www.thejournal.ie/water-birds-...

🚨Powerful polluting industries and reckless lawmakers are tearing down our main EU water law. ☠️

For the past 25 years, the law has driven the cleanup of our rivers and lakes. 💙💧

We need to stop them. 🛑

Sign our petition to say #HandsOffNature ✋👇
https://f.mtr.cool/idwqdgltoj

Members of Environmental Pillar and SWAN at a derogation farm

SWAN joined members of @envpillar.bsky.social yesterday on a tour of a derogation farm and talked to Minister Heydon and his team about the need for farmers like these not to have to live with uncertainty, facing another cliff edge on derogation, and instead to provide an off-ramp with supports.

Committee on Marine Protected Areas - Irish Wildlife Trust Committee on Marine Protected Areas First published online: 21 January 2026 Grace Carr, Marine Advocacy Officer On Tuesday 13 January we attended the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Fisheries and Mariti...

On 13 Jan we attended the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Fisheries & Maritime Affairs. This gave us an opportunity to engage with TDs & Senators + highlight our key asks in a public forum. Read about it & watch highlights from our speaking time:
iwt.ie/committee-on...
@fairseas.ie @swanireland.ie

🌊 2026 is the year we defend water 🌊

The Water Framework Directive is the EU's law to protect our rivers, drinking water and health. But corporate industry interests (Big Agriculture, Mining, Chemicals) are trying to kill it.

Time to resist, stand up, and defend the Water. Framework. Directive 💧✊

Private water projects ‘left state cleaning up developers’ mess’

"policies allowing for the private development of wastewater infrastructure have resulted in substandard work, costing the state hundreds of millions to clean up."

www.businesspost.ie/politics/off...

The Silver River has been badly devalued but it could thrive again A stretch of the Slieve Bloom river fails even minimal legal standards but other magnificent parts offer a glimpse of what could be

"The Silver River is severely injured, but with care and restoration, it could thrive again - if we want it."

www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

🚨 JOB ALERT 🚨

We’re looking to hire a Communications Officer💧📣

💙 Want to join the team? 💙

💧€30,400 – €34,400 for 4 days per week

💧 Apply by January 18th

💧Job description:
https://swanireland.ie/about-us/work-with-swan/communications-officer/

#IrishJobs #jobfairy #GreenJobs #ConservationJobs

🚨The govt is proposing new rules that would impose prohibitively expensive costs on eNGOs who seek to challenge unlawful planning, licencing, or policy decisions.

Cases like the An Taisce nitrates water quality case would never have happened if these rules were there!

Read 👇 & make a submission.

Wild cold water swimming may be good for your health but how do you know the water’s not polluted? - Sustainable Water Network This time of year, we start thinking about getting back to or starting up healthy routines. Often it is a major part of our new year resolutions. One that more people are choosing to add to their list...

Wild cold water swimming may be good for your health but how do you know the water’s not polluted?

Read our blog piece to find out 👇

swanireland.ie/2026/01/wild...

Ireland has a chance to get it right on protecting our seas Ireland has a once-in-a-generation chance to legally protect nature in our seas and along our coasts, and we need to do it properly, writes Jack O’Donovan Trá

"We are at a crossroads. Done right, MPAs could help to restore depleted fish stocks, protect our most endangered species & habitats, build climate resilience and support thriving coastal communities.

Done poorly, they risk becoming another political gesture"

www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...

Uisce Éireann reported more than 1,200 pollution incidents last year, but only seven were prosecuted Uisce Éireann reported more than 1,200 pollution incidents last year at its water and wastewater facilities, but just seven of them resulted in prosecutions.

In case you missed this over the Christmas holidays...

"Uisce Éireann reported more than 1,200 pollution incidents last year at its water and wastewater facilities"

Just seven incidents resulted in prosecution in the year, amounting to just €22,500 in fines.

www.independent.ie/irish-news/u...