Water Heritage Day in Louisburgh 2023

James Ryan- CALL

What a fantastic day we had in Louisburgh for Water Heritage Day 2023 on August 17th

Over fifty participants took part in the hands on experience at Louisburgh’s River, the Bunabhann. We were delighted to have biologists from Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) catch samples using nets and explain how these are indicators of the health of the river. We were very surprised by the assortment of little fish that showed up, including salmon, trout, eels, flounder, and stickleback. There was a lot of interaction and questions from the audience which were answered entertainingly by the two men from the IFI.

We then had Dr Ken Whelan, world-renowned salmon and fishery biologist catch samples of insect life in the river and he explained their biology and how studying the composition of insect life in water is used to assess its ecological status but also is a very useful way of gathering information about the quality of the water. Dr Ken explained how these creatures live, are interdependent, and demonstrate how healthy a river is just by the species that live in it. This was a very enjoyable experience for both adults and children as we could really see the abundance of life in the samples brought to the outdoor table.

We then walked to Louisburgh Town Hall for some delicious refreshments, including home baked scones and cakes! After the tea Dr Ken Whelan gave a very thought provoking and interesting presentation on the findings to date from the ecological studies being carried out on the two main rivers in our area, the Bunabhann and Carrowniskey.

This study was commissioned by Climate Action Louisburgh Locality (CALL) and has been generously supported by the Local Authorities Water Programme.

Overall the whole day was a huge success in obtaining increased awareness of local river life in our community and see what potential projects of monitoring, preservation and enhancement can be achieved locally.

We are so grateful to James Ryan for leading this Water Heritage Day and to all the guest speakers from Inland Fisheries Ireland and Dr Ken Whelan. But the day was made more enjoyable with the participation from so many adults and children who asked questions, engaged in the activities and made the day so special.

Looking forward to hearing more from CALL about our local rivers after the studies are completed.

Check out Climate Action Louisburgh Locality, dedicated website; CALL