Press Releases26 Jan 26

Practical solutions shared at ‘Let Justice Flow Like Rivers’ conference

Action to prevent pollution in Lough Neagh can be taken forward effectively and at a low cost, by containing water in shallow ditches (swales) and growing comfrey and willow to soak up nutrients which would otherwise flow towards the lough.

Professor Jim McAdam, an experienced farmer and long–standing researcher at Northern Ireland’s Agri–Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), outlined this solution at the ‘Let Justice Flow Like Rivers’ conference in Newry on Saturday, 17th January, as he discussed the characteristics which made the lough vulnerable to algal blooms.

“If you can stop those nutrients getting into the streams, tributaries and rivers, and into the lough, that would have a major impact,” he remarked. “It’s all about the principle of using plants and trees to recycle nutrients rather than them getting out into the water.”

The advantage of comfrey and willow is that they grow much more quickly than other trees and shrubs and can be grown in a variety of ways (alongside rivers, in clumps and hedges, or in silvopastures allowing animals to graze in forested areas).

Lough Neagh is vulnerable to pollution by being fed by 13 rivers but drained by only one. With a shallow mean depth (8.9 metres), the lough also warms up quickly. As the source of 45% of Northern Ireland’s drinking water, it is important to the whole region – the “beating heart of our country” in his words.

The area around the lough provided fertile farmland, which was developed into the modern landscape through the Plantation, construction of canals, and public works to reclaim land (especially around the south side) and build locks on the Lower Bann in the mid–19th Century. The latter projects were in response to the Great Famine, and supported by the then Archbishops of Armagh and many other leaders in the local community.

Not only does it stand out as the largest freshwater body in the British Isles, up to 2 million eels live within the lough and form the livelihood for a unique fishery. With what could be described as an “absolutely amazing GPS system”, the eels migrate between there and the Sargasso Sea off Florida. The eels are a protected species, as are pollen – a local whitefish only found in a few Irish lakes.

While a multitude of human activities surround (and make use of) Lough Neagh, it is often hard to reach and see due to its location. The lough was first designated as eutrophic – i.e. where nutrients accumulate in a body of water resulting in less oxygen content in the water –in 1994.

The algal bloom in 2023, a major infestation of cyanobacteria (usually known as blue–green algae), was mainly caused by excess phosphorous and nitrogen from water flowing into the lake with a warmer climate and invasive species (Zebra mussels) adding to the problem. The mussels clean the lough’s water but it then becomes warmer in summer, which lets algae grow more quickly.

A 2016 study found that 59% of the pollution comes from agriculture, followed by around 27% from waste–water treatment works, and 13% from septic tanks, and 2% from industrial sources (these proportions have been identified as broadly similar in more recent studies). This is not the fault of individual farmers, who have acted in good faith and have been encouraged by government policy to intensify their farming and store more slurry.

AFBI’s research has sought to apply science and find solutions, by measuring how much carbon is stored in and around Lough Neagh (especially in peatlands), assessing the impact of climate change, and providing evidence for nature–based solutions. While Lough Neagh has attracted considerable publicity, its problems can occur elsewhere in the island; he therefore hopes that his team’s research findings can help to protect the environment and build resilience amid climate change in other Irish watercourses.