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Research 254: TaLAM: Mapping Land Cover in Lowlands and Uplands with Satellite Imagery

Authors: Fiona Cawkwell, Christoph Raab, Brian Barrett, Stuart Green and John Finn, August 2018

Year: 2018

The Towards Land Cover Accounting and Monitoring (TaLAM) project is part of Ireland’s response to creating a national land cover mapping programme. Its aims are to demonstrate how the new digital map of Ireland, Prime2, from Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSI), can be combined with satellite imagery to produce land cover maps.

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Research 256: National Preparedness to Adapt to Climate Change: Analysis of State of Play

Author: Margaret Desmond, June 2018

Year: 2018

The goal of international and national climate adaptation policy is the transition to a low-carbon, climate-resilient society and economy. This new assessment interrogates in detail Ireland’s preparedness for adaptation action, with a focus on seven key areas related to the adaptation plan-making process.

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Research 252: Climate Resilient Ireland

Author: Tara Shine, June 2018

Year: 2018

This study defines a common understanding of what constitutes a climate resilient Ireland, it examines climate resilient pathways which Ireland can take to transition to a low-carbon, climate resilient society and meet its goals as set out in the Climate Act 2015. Finally, it identifies eight factors which should inform the choice of those pathways.

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Research 248: Assessment of Actions to Support the Work of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition

Author: Tara Shine, June 2018

Year: 2018

Ireland became a member of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) in 2013 to demonstrate commitment to climate and air pollution issues and to improve policy coherence between climate and air policy. This small-scale study, identifies ways in which Ireland can contribute to and benefit from its participation in the CCAC. The study pays particular attention to CCAC efforts to reduce Short-lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs).

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Research 246: Enabling Decarbonisation: A Study of Energy Sector Governance in Ireland

Author: Diarmuid Torney, June 2018

Year: 2018

Ireland has strict decarbonisation targets to meet by 2050. This study is concerned with which governance institutions could enable this transition to a low carbon economy and society. Through analysis of the roles and mandates of a number of governing state institutions in the energy sector, the study makes a number of recommendations for how governance arrangements could be strengthened to better facilitate decarbonisation.

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Research 253: Desludging Rates and Mechanisms for Domestic Wastewater Treatment System Sludges in Ireland

Authors: Laurence Gill, Joanne Mac Mahon, Jan Knappe, Salem Gharbia and Francesco Pilla, May 2018

Year: 2018

This study has produced a set of guidelines for owners of septic tanks and packaged treatment systems to help to address the lack of understanding among homeowners of how their domestic wastewater treatment systems operate and to encourage responsible operation and maintenance.

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Research 251: The Impact of On-site Domestic Wastewater Effluent on Rivers and Wells

Authors: Laurence Gill, Vincent O’Flaherty, Bruce Misstear, Laura Brophy, Christopher Fennell, Donata Dubber, David O’Connell, Kathryn Kilroy, Maria Barrett, Paul Johnston, Francesco Pilla and Phillip Geary, May 2018

Year: 2018

This research project evaluated the impact of domestic wastewater treatment system (DWWTS) effluent as a health hazard to consumers of groundwater from private wells and also a source of nutrient water pollution to surface water in small catchments.

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Research 249: Catchment Management Support Tools for Characterisation and Evaluation of Programme of Measures

Authors: Eva M. Mockler and Michael Bruen, May 2018

Year: 2018

Nutrient enrichment and eutrophication can negatively impact on freshwater ecosystems, estuarine and coastal waters. As a result of improvements in nutrient management and regulation, there has been a large reduction in total phosphorus, total ammonia and total nitrogen emissions from Irish catchments in recent decades.

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Research 245: Designing Interventions for Sustainable Behaviour Change in Business and Communities

Author: Simon O’Rafferty, May 2018

Year: 2018

Sustainable consumption and production demands behaviour changes. Policymakers and regulators already apply a range of interventions and incentives with a view to changing individual and organisational behaviour. This includes fiscal incentives, subsidies, pricing mechanisms and market-based instruments, standards, eco-labels and communication, business support programmes and curriculum development.

EPA Research Documents for Calls announced in 2018

Year: 2018

Documents for 2018 Calls

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Research 247: Protecting the North Atlantic Atmosphere: A Report on the Outcome of an International Meeting on the Twentieth Anniversary of the Second Aerosol

Authors: Leonard A. Barrie and Frank McGovern, May 2018

Year: 2018

The North Atlantic Ocean is flanked by four major continental regions, and is impacted by emissions from these regions, including those from the major conurbations and industrial regions, as well as by emissions from intercontinental and regional transport systems.

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Research 244: Regional Climate Model Simulations for Ireland for the 21st Century

Authors: Rowan Fealy, Cindy Bruyére and Catriona Duffy, May 2018

Year: 2018

The model simulations represent Ireland’s contribution to the European component of the Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment (EURO-CORDEX), a World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) initiative to address climate information needs at the regional level.

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Research 243: Role of Passive Sampling in Screening and Monitoring of New and Emerging Chemicals

Authors: Fiona Regan, Lisa Jones, Jenny Ronan, Denis Crowley, Evin McGovern and Brendan McHugh, April 2018

Year: 2018

Passive sampling (PS) techniques are rapidly developing as very cost-effective state-of-the-art tools for identifying and measuring ultra-trace micropollutants in water.

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Research 233: WARNDIS Project Final Report: A Review of Climate Change-related Hazards and Natural Disaster Vulnerabilities and of Agencies Involved in Warning

Authors: Michael Bruen and Mawuli Dzakpasu, March 2018

Year: 2018

The purpose of this study was to identify and review the main types of natural disasters that may be impacted by anticipated climate change; identify the key agencies involved; assess their roles and capabilities; and identify existing and new potential data streams to assist with warning and disaster management.

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Research 242: HOMERUN: Relative Homogenisation of the Irish Precipitation Network

Authors: John Coll, Mary Curley, Séamus Walsh and John Sweeney, March 2018

Year: 2018

Long instrumental records are rarely, if ever, homogeneous and most decade-to-century-scale time series of atmospheric data have been affected by changes caused by climatic and/or non-climatic factors. Nevertheless, accurate climate data are a prerequisite for basing climate-related decision-making on, and quality-controlled homogenised climate data are becoming integral to efforts across many countries to deliver climate services.

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Research 241: Research of Upcycling Supports to Increase Re-use, with a Focus on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (UpWEEE)

Authors: Michael Johnson, Kathleen McMahon and Colin Fitzpatrick, March 2018

Year: 2018

This report provides a range of recommendations aimed at supporting preparation for re-use of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) that will support the extension and development of this activity in Ireland.

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Research 240: Technologies for Monitoring, Detecting and Treating Overflows from Urban Wastewater Networks

Authors: David Morgan, Liwen Xiao and Aonghus McNabola, March 2018

Year: 2018

In Ireland, most urban areas are drained by combined sewer systems, which convey wastewater and stormwater in a single pipe. During rainfall the capacity of combined sewers may be exceeded, leading to untreated discharges to receiving waters via storm water overflows (SWOs), which are a source of microbial pathogens.

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Research 236: Network Monitoring Rewetted and Restored Peatlands/Organic Soils for Climate and Biodiversity Benefits (NEROS)

Authors: Florence Renou-Wilson, David Wilson, Caítlin Rigney, Ken Byrne, Catherine Farrell and Christoph Müller, February 2018

Year: 2018

Ireland contains large areas of peatlands that constitute some of the most ecologically diverse habitats in the country. In natural peatlands, permanently waterlogged conditions prevent the complete decomposition of dead plant material leading to the accumulation of carbon rich peat. However, less than 20 % of the original peatland area is considered to be worthy of conservation.

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Research 238: Identifying, Reviewing and Testing the Factors that Drive the Sustainable Behaviour and Transition of Communities, Groups and Individuals

Authors: Vincent Carragher and Sarah McCormack, February 2018

Year: 2018

This research critically reviewed community interventions and sustainable-behaviour change programmes identifying drivers (enablers) adopted by those interventions. The aim was to distinguish key characteristics of success while also identifying barriers to sustainable transition and change.

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Research 237: Integrated Indicators for Ireland: Adjusting Economic Progress for Environmental and Social Sustainability (I3: AEPESS)

Authors: Eleanor Doyle and Mauricio Perez-Alaniz, January 2018

Year: 2018

Decoupling economic growth from environmental quality is an imperative for Ireland, as with other modern developed economies. Not only has economic growth been linked with environmental sustainability impacts, but more recently social sustainability has also been highlighted in terms of its relationship to, and impacts from, the economy.

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