The data in this indicator refer to both freshwater and seawater bathing sites.
In 2023, 96.6% of bathing sites in Ireland were classified as having sufficient water quality. This was down from 97.3% in 2022 and also lower than the average 97.7% in the period 2000-2004.
In contrast, the proportion of bathing sites classified as having good water quality improved over the 1990-2023 period. In 2023, 93.2% of these sites had good water quality. This was an increase from the 2022 figure of 92.6% and also from the average figure of 87.3% between 2000 and 2004.
| Year | Sufficient water quality | Good water quality |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 98.5 | 80.8 |
| 1999 | 98.5 | 89.2 |
| 2000 | 98.5 | 91.5 |
| 2001 | 97.7 | 87.8 |
| 2002 | 97.7 | 84.7 |
| 2003 | 96.9 | 84.7 |
| 2004 | 97.7 | 87.8 |
| 2005 | 96.2 | 90.8 |
| 2006 | 96.9 | 90.1 |
| 2007 | 96.9 | 80.2 |
| 2008 | 93.1 | 77.9 |
| 2009 | 93.1 | 82.4 |
| 2010 | 96.9 | 90.1 |
| 2011 | 98.5 | 83 |
| 2012 | 97 | 66.9 |
| 2013 | 96.8 | 84.4 |
| 2014 | 94.1 | 86.7 |
| 2015 | 93.4 | 83.2 |
| 2016 | 92.9 | 85.8 |
| 2017 | 93 | 84.5 |
| 2018 | 94.5 | 86.2 |
| 2019 | 95.2 | 89.1 |
| 2020 | 95.9 | 89.2 |
| 2021 | 97.3 | 90.5 |
| 2022 | 97.3 | 92.6 |
| 2023 | 96.6 | 93.2 |
Three types of public water supplies are monitored for pollutants, including E.coli and Trihalomethane (THM) contamination: public water supplies, public group water supplies and private group water supplies.
Compliance with E.coli standards has been over 98% for public water supplies and public group water supplies over the entire 1990-2023 period. Compliance of private group water supplies has improved significantly from an average of 82.5% over the 2004-2008 period to 97.8% in 2023.
The compliance rate of public water supplies for THM’s has been worse than for E.coli and fell again in 2023. Public group water supplies have performed the worst, with compliance for THM’s falling from 92.3% in 2022 to 85.5% in 2023. This reflects problems with the West Clare Regional Water Supply, increased monitoring and heavier rainfall events in recent years.
| Year | Compliance of public water supplies with THM standard | Compliance of public group water supplies with THM standard | Compliance of private group water supplies with THM standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 87.4 | 70.4 | 89.4 |
| 2010 | 89.3 | 76.2 | 85.5 |
| 2011 | 91 | 87.1 | 93.6 |
| 2012 | 87 | 60.3 | 93.8 |
| 2013 | 92.1 | 79.8 | 94.4 |
| 2014 | 93 | 93.1 | 93.3 |
| 2015 | 91.5 | 87.2 | 95.7 |
| 2016 | 93.1 | 95.7 | 90.9 |
| 2017 | 94.3 | 96.6 | 96 |
| 2018 | 95.1 | 87.9 | 95.1 |
| 2019 | 96.1 | 89.2 | 97.5 |
| 2020 | 97.3 | 89.4 | 93.5 |
| 2021 | 95.3 | 82.61 | 93.75 |
| 2022 | 95.64 | 92.26 | 95 |
| 2023 | 95.52 | 85.45 | 93.69 |
There has been a significant improvement in the level of treatment of urban wastewater. In 2023 just 0.9% of urban wastewater received no treatment compared with an average of 41% in 1997-1999. The proportion of urban wastewater receiving secondary treatment increased from 21.5% to 58.6% over this period. In 2023, 39.6% of wastewater received secondary treatment with nutrient reduction, up from 4.5% in 1997-1999.
| Year | No treatment | Primary treatment | Secondary treatment | Secondary treatment with nutrient reduction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997-1999 | 41 | 33 | 21.5 | 4.5 |
| 2000-2004 | 30.5 | 21.5 | 39.5 | 8.5 |
| 2005-2009 | 10.3 | 1.3 | 74.3 | 14 |
| 2010-2014 | 5.1 | 1.5 | 70.4 | 23 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 4.2 | 1 | 68.3 | 26.5 |
| 2016 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 69.4 | 26.6 |
| 2017 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 66.6 | 30 |
| 2018 | 1.5 | 1 | 67.2 | 30.2 |
| 2019 | 1.4 | 1 | 67.2 | 30.4 |
| 2020 | 1.4 | 1 | 63.8 | 33.8 |
| 2021 | 1.1 | 1 | 59 | 39 |
| 2022 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 58.4 | 39.5 |
| 2023 | 0.9 | 1 | 58.6 | 39.6 |
There was a mixed picture concerning river water quality in Ireland in recent decades. The proportion of rivers and streams with high quality or with poor quality water decreased. Those with good or moderate water quality increased.
The percentage of rivers and streams with bad or poor water quality decreased over time. In 2020-2023 period 18% of rivers and streams were of bad or poor quality, compared with 25% between 1987-1990.
The percentage of rivers and streams with good or moderate water quality increased from 49% to 67% over this time frame.
However, the proportion of rivers and streams with high water quality declined severely from 27% in the 1987-1990 period to 16% between 2020-2023.
In 2023, the proportion of groundwater samples in Ireland with low nitrates - that is less than five milligrams per litre (<5mg/l) - increased to 23%, up from an average of 16% in the mid-1990’s.
Similarly, the percentage of samples with moderate nitrate levels (5-10 mg/l) rose to 20%, compared with 16% during the same period. This is shown in Table 5.5.
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