SDG 6.4.1 Change in water use efficiency over time - data for Ireland is currently being developed at national level and will be made available when finalised.
Information on the FAO website gives the definition of SDG Indicator 6.4.1 as:
Water Use Efficiency (WUE) at national level is the sum of the efficiencies in the major economic sectors weighted according to the proportion of water withdrawn by each sector over the total withdrawals.
SDG 6.4.1 measures changes in WUE and has been designed to address the economic component of SDG Target 6.4 "By 2030, substantially increase water use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity".
Water use efficiency is defined as the value added in US dollars per volume of water withdrawn in cubic metres, by a given economic activity over time. It considers water use by all economic activities, with a focus on agriculture, industry and the service sector.
The indicator allows countries to assess to what extent their economic growth depends on the use of their water resources. Regional differences in climate and water availability must be considered in the interpretation of this indicator, in particular for agriculture.
SDG 6.4.2 Level of water stress: freshwater withdrawal as a proportion of available freshwater resources - the CSO Environment and Climate Division report water resources, water abstraction figures and environmental flow requirements. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations then derives the SDG 6.4.2 from this data. The water abstraction figures the CSO reported to FAO were based on the Environmental Protection Agency's water abstraction register. While not all abstractions are required to register, an estimated 99% of the volume abstracted in Ireland has been registered.
Information on the FAO website gives the definition of SDG Indicator 6.4.2 as:
The level of water stress: freshwater withdrawal as a proportion of available freshwater resources is the ratio between total freshwater withdrawn by major economic sectors and total renewable freshwater resources, after taking into account environmental water requirements.
This indicator is also known as water withdrawal intensity and will measure progress towards SDG Target 6.4 "By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity".
Water stress in Ireland was 16% in 2018. This means that the total freshwater withdrawal was 16% of renewable freshwater resources less environmental flow requirements. Total freshwater withdrawal was 1.28 billion cubic metres while total renewable freshwater resources was 52.8 billion cubic metres and environmental flow requirements was 44.88 billion cubic metres. See preliminary figures in Table 5.1.
SDG 6.5.1 Degree of integrated water resources management implementation (0-100), is reported by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
The indicator measures progress towards target 6.5: “By 2030, implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate”. The target supports the equitable and efficient use of water resources, which is essential for social and economic development, as well as environmental sustainability. The actions to achieve target 6.5 directly underpin the other water-related targets within SDG-6: “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all”. More detailed methodology information is available in the UN SDG 6.5.1 metadata document.
Data for this indicator is collected by the UN Environment Division by way of a survey questionnaire. Ireland's submission for this questionnaire is completed by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The degree of integrated water resource management (IWRM) is based on scores from approximately 30 questions covering different aspects of IWRM.
The questionnaire has been designed to also be useful as a simple diagnostic tool for countries to identify strengths and weaknesses of different aspects of IWRM implementation. It measures implementation in incremental steps, which allows countries to identify barriers and enablers to furthering IWRM.
The survey contains four sections, each covering a key dimension of IWRM:
1. Enabling environment: Policies, laws and plans to support IWRM implementation.
2. Institutions and participation: The range and roles of political, social, economic and administrative institutions and other stakeholder groups that help to support implementation.
3. Management instruments: The tools and activities that enable decision-makers and users to make rational and informed choices between alternative actions.
4. Financing: Budgeting and financing made available and used for water resources development and management (apart from drinking water supply and sanitation) from various sources.
The degree of Integrated Water Resources Management Implementation (IWRM) in 2020 was 81%. IWRM is a process which promotes the co-ordinated development and management of water, land and related resources, in order to maximize the resultant economic and social welfare in an equitable manner without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems.
The highest score was 84% for management instruments, which are the tools and activities that enable decision makers and users to make choices about managing water resources.
The lowest score was 78% for the financing made available and used for water resources and development and management (apart from drinking water supply and sanitation). See Table 5.2 and Figure 5.1. Full details of footnotes in relation to this table and IWRM scoring are available in the background notes.
For further information on country baseline reporting summaries 2017/2018 click on Ireland at SDG 6.5.1 National Scores by Survey Question.
| X-axis label | Average Scores |
|---|---|
| Enabling Environment | 81 |
| Institutions and Participation | 80 |
| Management Instruments | 84 |
| Financing | 78 |
| Final WRM Score | 81 |
SDG 6.5.2 Proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation is reported by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
The proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation is defined as the proportion of transboundary basin area within a country with an operational arrangement for water cooperation. It is derived by adding up the surface area in a country of those transboundary surface water catchments and transboundary aquifers (i.e. ‘transboundary’ basins) that are covered by an operational arrangement and dividing the obtained area by the aggregate total area in a country of all transboundary basins (both catchments and aquifers). The result is multiplied by 100 to obtain it expressed as percentage share. More detailed methodology information is available in the UN SDG 6.5.2 metadata document.
In 2020, the proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation was 100% for Ireland. See Table 5.3.
SDG 6.6.1 Change in the extent of water related ecosystems over time, tracks changes to water-related ecosystems (lakes, rivers, wetlands, groundwater). Designated as a Tier 1 indicator by the Inter-Agency Expert Group on SDG’s, the indicator incorporates satellite-based earth observations data. Data is validated by the EPA against their own methodologies and datasets. This methodology is not routinely applied by state agencies in Ireland so it was not possible to validate the data directly.
Target 6.6 aims to “protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes” through Indicator 6.6.1 which aims to understand how and why these ecosystems are changing in extent over time. More detailed methodology information is available in the UN SDG 6.6.1 metadata document and earth observations data has been made available on the SDG661 app. Users can freely access, visualize and download national, sub-national and basin level statistics on different types of water-related ecosystems.
Between the time periods 2007-2011 and 2013-2017 the water body extent which was 'maybe permanent' was relatively stable, dropping only slightly from 1,528.12 km2 to 1,515.69 km2. See Table 5.4.
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