Laois public meeting on farm inspections into river water quality
Laois County Council hosting event in Portlaoise
Farmers in the Raheen and Trumera areas are being invited to attend a public meeting ahead of an upcoming series of water quality inspections.
Laois County Council says its National Agricultural Inspection Programme (NAIP) team is preparing to commence inspections of farms in the vicinity of water courses in the area close to landholdings.
The focus will be on farms in River Cappanacloghy and Clonawoolan Stream with the aim of improving water quality within the river catchments.
As part of these preparations, the NAIP team will host a public information meeting on Thursday, July 23 at 8 pm at The Maldron Hotel, Portlaoise. The Council says attendees will receive an overview of the NAIP, including details on the inspection process and the key elements the team will be assessing during farm inspections. Following the presentation, NAIP staff will be available to address questions and discuss any concerns from those present.
While it is aimed at farmers, members of the public are welcome to attend.
The NAIP is an Irish initiative overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It directs local authorities to conduct risk-based farm inspections. The EPA says the goal is to enforce Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) Regulations and prevent farm runoff from polluting local rivers and coastal waters.
The recently published NAIP summary report for 2025 outlined Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) inspection figures by county. It revealed a high national non-compliance rate in Laois and other counties. A total of 136 initial farm inspections were carried out in Laois. Nearly half of the local farms had to be reinspected for not reaching set standards.