The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for protecting and improving the environment as a valuable asset for the people of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
. It operates independently under the
Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
History
The EPA was founded in 1993, following the enactment of the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992.
In 2014, it merged with the
Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland, which was itself founded in 1992.
The present-day EPA continues the activities of both groups.
Organisation
The EPA operates independently under the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
It is led by an advisory committee headed by a director general. The current director general, Laura Burke, was appointed in 2011.
Offices
There are five offices which answer to the advisory committee.
* The Office of Environmental Enforcement is responsible for implementing and enforcing environmental legislation.
* The Office of Environmental Sustainability is responsible for advocating for environmental protection and sustainability, with a goal in particular to meet Ireland's multiple environmental commitments.
* The Office of Evidence and Assessment is responsible for providing environmental data, information and assessment.
* The Office of Radiation Protection and Environmental Monitoring - responsible for ensuring that the public is protected from the effects of harmful ionizing radiation.
* The Office of Communications and Corporate Services - responsible for providing support for all staff across the EPA.
Sites
The EPA operates from a number of sites across Ireland. The Headquarters are located in
Johnstown Castle
Johnstown Castle is a Gothic Revival castle located in County Wexford, Ireland.
Location
Johnstown Castle is located on the Johnstown Castle Estate, a estate, located off the road between Murntown and Rathaspeck, southwest of Wexford town. ...
Estate,
County Wexford
County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí C ...
.
Additional offices are located in:
*
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
*
Inniscarra
Inniscarra () is a civil parish in the barony of Muskerry East, County Cork, Ireland. It is located about 15km west of Cork city. The local GAA club is Inniscarra GAA and Dripsey GAA. Inniscarra is located on the north side of the River Lee. ...
,
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
*
Castlebar
Castlebar () is the county town of County Mayo, Ireland. Developing around a 13th century castle of the de Barry family, from which the town got its name, the town now acts as a social and economic focal point for the surrounding hinterland. W ...
,
County Mayo
County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the yew trees") is a county in Ireland. In the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Counci ...
*
Monaghan
Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Ireland. It also provides the name of its civil parish and barony.
The population of the town as of the 2016 census was 7,678. The town is on the N2 road from Dublin to Derry and Let ...
*
Kilkenny
Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512.
Kilken ...
*
Athlone
Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midlands Region with a population of ...
,
County Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Ireland
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 =
, subdivis ...
*
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2 ...
See also
*
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the study of the conservation of nature and of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction and the erosion of biotic interactions. It is an in ...
*
Ecology
Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overl ...
*
Environmental protection
Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment by individuals, organizations and governments. Its objectives are to conserve natural resources and the existing natural environment and, where possible, to repair dam ...
*
Habitat conservation
Habitat conservation is a management practice that seeks to conserve, protect and restore habitats and prevent species extinction, fragmentation or reduction in range. It is a priority of many groups that cannot be easily characterized in ter ...
*
Natural environment
The natural environment or natural world encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses t ...
*
Natural capital
Natural capital is the world's stock of natural resources, which includes geology, soils, air, water and all living organisms. Some natural capital assets provide people with free goods and services, often called ecosystem services. All of t ...
*
Natural resource
Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. ...
*
Renewable resource
A renewable resource, also known as a flow resource, is a natural resource which will replenish to replace the portion depleted by usage and consumption, either through natural reproduction or other recurring processes in a finite amount of ti ...
*
Sustainable development
Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The ...
*
Sustainability
Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...
References
External links
Environmental Protection Agency- Ireland
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
Government agencies of the Republic of Ireland
Environmental organisations based in Ireland
Environment of the Republic of Ireland
State-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland
Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
Radiation protection organizations
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