This special An Taisce webinar was recorded on 5 June 2025:

‘What you need to know about nitrates’ with An Taisce's Head of Advocacy, Dr Elaine McGoff. 

You can watch the video by clicking this link.

Water quality has been in the news a lot lately, from the giant algal blooms of Ireland’s largest lake, Lough Neagh, to the recent EPA report citing the dire ecological status of Lady's Island Lake in Wexford.

It can be seen above in the banner image from Google Earth showing its bright green overgrowth of algae. The webinar explores what nitrates are, how they can negatively impact ecology and why this continues to be an issue in Ireland.

Last year, the High Court referred An Taisce's case taken over the Government's fifth Nitrates Action Programme to the Court of Justice of the European Union and a decision is due soon. This landmark case is explained along with an understanding of where the challenges lie in tackling nitrate pollution in Ireland.

*The webinar has been lightly edited from the original for length.