Lough Neagh: A shared responsibility

Lough Neagh is the largest freshwater lake in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Measuring over 392 km2, it contains enough water to fill seven million swimming pools.

Lough Neagh is also of huge economic significance, as it supplies Northern Ireland with 40 per cent of its drinking water and 30 per cent of all the sand needed for the construction industry in Northern Ireland. 

However, in the summer of 2023 the Lough encountered what has been described as an ecological crisis, in the form of a major blue green algae bloom.

In response to the blue green algae crisis, Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Andrew Muir MLA, published The Lough Neagh Report and Action Plan with 37 action points and four key pillars to address the nutrient overload and water quality issues of the Lough and its wider catchment.

The Lough Neagh Partnership has been fully supportive of the Minister’s Report and some very positive developments have already taken place including the provision of new Water Quality Inspectors, the creation of a new Lough Neagh Stakeholder Forum, the holding of Water Quality information events, updating and educating local communities on the reasons and effects of the blue green algae, encouraging the private sector to generate new innovative solutions, and important new research on the impacts of nutrient overload and climate change. Further work on farm policy development and nutrient load management are also being considered.

It is important to highlight that the health of Lough Neagh is the responsibility of all of us, not just the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. That includes farmers, private households with septic tanks, industry and businesses, and of course, sewage works. 

Climate change has resulted in a 1oC increase in the temperature of the Lough over the last 30 years and this too is the responsibility of us all. We need to consider and care for the Lough in every way we can, protecting it for generations to come.

The problems that we have witnessed have, as Minister Muir has said, “been decades in the making”, and there is a general consensus that it will take decades for the Lough to recover.

The responsibility for addressing the lough’s problems also have a cross border dimension in that 10 per cent of the catchment lies in the Republic of Ireland as its catchment stretches as far as County Monaghan.

Everyone can take practical steps to help Lough Neagh recover:

• dispose of all chemicals, fats and oils at your local recycling centre;

• maintain your septic tank and desludge annually;

• use low phosphate detergents;

• dispose of all plastics and litter responsibly; and

• do not pour oils or fat down your sink or drain.

For more information on Minister Muir’s Lough Neagh Report and Action plan, visit:
https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/publications/lough-neagh-report-and-action-plan

For more information on the work of the Lough Neagh Partnership, visit: www.loughneaghpartnership.org