Air quality issue remain for Kildare

Air and water quality in County Kildare is generally good but there are problem areas, Kildare County Council has been told.

Extending smoke zones  in Kildare is one of the actions being considered.

It is also planned to put new air monitoring stations in Leixlip and Naas this year.

Regarding air quality, the council’s Director of Services, Water Services and Environment, Joe Boland, said here does tend to be somewhat of a decline though in the late autumn/early winter period. “This is generally the trend nationally and is mainly associated with the lighting of domestic fires.”

Mr Boland said that some possible measures to improve the situation to be considered  might include the extension of monitor stations, as is proposed.

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Another is possibly extending the “low smoke zones” which currently relate to the following areas: Newbridge, including,, Naas, Sallins, and Maynooth, Celbridge and Leixlip.

Cllr Nuala Killeen asked  the council to provide a report for 2019 on the air and river water quality monitoring.

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Last year, as part of the National Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Programme, developed by the Environment Protection Agency and assisted by the Health Service Executive and Kildare County Council,  air quality instruments were installed at Celbridge and Leixlip.

The data from these can been seen on the EPA site:

http://www.epa.ie/air/quality/localairqualitydata.

Figures from Newbridge are temporarily out of action for calibration purposes.

As part of the National Monitoring Network, the EPA plans to install two additional stations this year, at Leixlip and Naas.

On water, Mr Boland said that river/surface water quality in Kildare is generally moderate/good though there are a few water bodies which vary between moderate and poor e.g., the Slate, Tully and Clonsambo/Lyreen. “These have been prioritised for action as per the ‘Programme of Measures’ associated with the current round of river basin management plans.”

Mr Boland said  issues tend to arise mainly from a number of sources: agricultural, domestic septic tanks, urban waste water systems, as well as

industrial sources and hydromorphology (channelisation).

Mr Boland said  there is a close liaison with Local Authorities Water and Communities Office (LAWCO) as well as the Environmental Protection Agency. “This is very much a priority area and work remains

ongoing.”

He said ground water sources are “generally good.”