This week CALL visited Lough Carra Catchment Association’s public meeting. Lough Carra is the uppermost lake in the Carra/Mask/Corrib system that forms a major part of the “Great Western Lakes” of Ireland. 

The meeting was attended by over 30 people from the community (and beyond). There were four speakers giving updates on the progress of the monitoring and baselining studies that the Catchment Association are currently carrying out and a few other updates as you can see from their flier.

When we set off for the 1 hour journey from the Louisburgh area, for a meeting that only started at 8pm, with all those speakers, I was slightly dreading a very late night. School bus run and goats to feed and milk the following morning just the same as any other week day.

Actually, the meeting was managed extremely well and all done in less than an hour and a half. The speakers kept to their time, rigorously- I got the impression there had been occasions when meetings had run on a bit- and they gave very impressive detailed data about, for example, the Phosphorus and Ammonia levels in the surface waters running into the Lough; the marl crusts, a feature of a limestone lake, made of a mixture of ancient cyanobacteria and calcium carbonatehttps://www.catchments.ie/the-marl-crusts-of-lough-carra; the underwater vegetation of the lake showing the the extent of the changes to the composition of the vegetation, and the changes in the important Charophyte algae https://loughcarra.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Cilian-Roden-Underwater-Vegetation-of-Lough-Carra-A5.pdf; and the changing patterns of the vegetation on the surface of the lake with particular reference to water milfoil and bullrush. https://loughcarra.org/aquatic-ecology/emergent-vegetation/.

Much of the monitoring work being done is supported by the Association’s involvement in a LIFE project (EU funding). There is no doubt of the importance of this funding for the mission of the Lough CArra association to:“Restore, protect and conserve the ecological integrity of Lough Carra and its lakeshore habitats and to ensure the quality of drinking water from the lake” . https://loughcarra.org/. There is also a group of dedicated and expert volunteers, who have worked over a number of years to help monitor, protect and restore the special habitat of this Marl lake- which is also a source of drinking water for the surrounding area. Impressive all round. I’m very glad I went to the meeting, and I’m looking forward to learning more about the work of the Lough Carra Catchment Association.