Permanent environmental monitoring for Dublin Bay (Ireland)

Challenge(s)

Assessing and reducing the port’s environmental impacts.

Recommendation(s)

Compile an inventory of the different types of environmental impact

The restrictions imposed by national and supranational environmental legislation offer an opportunity to adopt a proactive rather than a reactive approach, by committing to dynamic, forward-looking environmental strategies. Before practical steps can be taken to monitor and manage the environmental impacts of ports, especially in city-port interface areas, those impacts first need to be clearly identified and assessed.

Good practice

In 2017, the Port of Dublin signed a 1.8 million euro deal with TechWorks Marine Ltd to monitor environmental conditions in Dublin Bay. The project entails the use of four buoys placed at strategic points in the bay, to provide real-time data on water quality, waves and currents. Known as the CoastEye Monitoring Buoys, they are also capable of using sonar to detect whale and dolphin activity.
The data are then forwarded to the Port of Dublin’s environmental experts every twenty minutes by 4G, or satellite if necessary. The project will last several years, and provide a detailed picture of environmental conditions in Dublin Bay.
It is one of the cornerstones of the environmental monitoring programme implemented by the Port of Dublin, as part of the Alexandra Quay redevelopment.