Freshwater Monitoring and Assessment
The Water Science and Evidence group (WSE) promotes the conservation of the water resources of Northern Ireland and the cleanliness of water in waterways and underground whilst taking into account the needs of industry and agriculture, the protection of fisheries, the protection of public health, the preservation of amenities, and the conservation of flora and fauna.
The Freshwater Monitoring and Assessment Group (FMA) contributes to protection of the aquatic environment by:
- monitoring water quality in rivers and lakes
- hydrological modelling of river flow and channel storage
- preparing water quality plans to inform catchment management
- reporting water quality data to relevant authorities
- responding to water-related queries from stakeholders and consultants
- promoting data availability through Open Data NI
Freshwater Investigations
The Freshwater Investigations (FI) team is a key part of the Freshwater Monitoring and Assessment (FMA) group. FI conducts scientific investigations into pollution incidents, fish kills, and assists with catchment management initiatives across Northern Ireland. The team works collaboratively with a wide range of partners, stakeholders, and colleagues.
Using a combination of biological assessments (e.g. invertebrate sampling), physicochemical monitoring using in-situ instrumentation, and rapid assessment techniques, FI delivers detailed and often real-time data to identify pollution sources and to assess severity and impact. This evidence supports enforcement actions and informs environmental management.
In response to the recent blue-green algae crisis, FI has deployed a network of state-of-the-art telemetered instruments across Lough Neagh and its inflowing rivers. These devices monitor key water quality parameters every 30 minutes, including: Phycocyanin (blue-green algae); Temperature; Dissolved oxygen; Turbidity; and Conductivity. Data will be available to stakeholders and research institutions via the Lough Neagh Platform, supporting a core objective of the Minister’s Lough Neagh Action Plan 2024.
FI also conducts routine biological monitoring under the Water Framework Directive (WFD), which is embedded in UK legislation. Invertebrate samples are collected from 485 sites during each River Basin Cycle. These samples are analysed using the River Invertebrate Classification Tool (RICT), contributing to the overall ecological status classification of Northern Ireland’s rivers.
Freshwater Ecology
The Freshwater Ecology (FE) team is responsible for managing the freshwater monitoring programmes for rivers and lakes. The main driver for our current freshwater ecological monitoring programme is the Water Framework Directive Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 (SR 2017 No. 81).
The WFD regulations identify the quality elements that should be monitored in rivers and lakes and the frequencies at which this monitoring should be carried out. FE undertake monitoring of macrophytes and diatoms in rivers and macrophytes and diatoms and phytoplankton in lakes through field surveys, sampling and laboratory analysis.
The ultimate aim of monitoring programmes is to provide an assessment of surface water status and to help identify the pressures on each water body. Within Northern Ireland there are 450 river water bodies and 21 lake water bodies.
More details on what we monitor and how we classify can be found in the River and Lake Monitoring and Classification Methodology document.
The team are also responsible for reporting under the Nitrates and Urban Waste Water treatment Regulations. More details on reporting under the Nutrient Action Programme monitoring can be found on our Nutrient Action Programme page.
Lake Monitoring & Evidence – Lough Neagh
The Lake Monitoring & Evidence (LME) team implements the Lough Neagh Priority Catchment Monitoring Programme, collecting multi-parameter data (chemistry, phytoplankton and in-situ measurements) from nine monitoring sites around Lough Neagh to better understand cyanobacteria bloom dynamics. They verify and analyse bloom events across Northern Ireland, including public reports via the ‘Bloomin’ Algae’ app, and perform taxonomic identification of cyanobacteria in samples. The team also assists with the range of routine biological monitoring in rivers and lakes required under the Water Environment (WFD) Regulations (2017).