The Rivers Trust has welcomed the long-awaited publication of the NI Programme for Government (PfG) 2024-2027 but cautions that it does not go far enough to protect our rivers, loughs and the wider environment. The leading environmental charity is urging the Executive, beyond this outline plan, to make stronger and properly resourced commitments, set clear targets, and ensure robust enforcement to safeguard Northern Ireland’s freshwater resources for today and future generations.

The Rivers Trust All-Ireland Director Mark Horton said: “Whilst we welcome the publication of the PfG and the Northern Ireland Executive’s recognition of the freshwater, biodiversity and climate crisis, without clear targets, enforcement mechanisms, and significant investment, our government is essentially planning to fall significantly short of the necessary improvements that are so urgently required.

“In Northern Ireland, we are amid an unprecedented environmental crisis, with serious repercussions for society and economy. Northern Ireland’s water quality is of major concern, with less than one-third of our rivers and only 14% of our lakes meeting 'good' ecological status. Our rivers, lakes, and their wildlife and communities need urgent action now, not just long-term ambition.”

As the leading river conservation charity across the UK and Ireland, The Rivers Trust acknowledges commitments in the PfG to deliver the Lough Neagh Action Plan, the Environmental Improvement Plan, and to consult and produce the overdue Climate Action Plan. The government’s recognition of the need for flood risk management, sustainable land use, and biodiversity recovery is an important step towards integrating environmental resilience into policy. However, significant gaps remain that must be urgently addressed.

Mark Horton continued: “To truly safeguard our freshwater environment, the Northern Ireland government must set a measurable course of improvement by establishing binding pollution reduction targets, embrace Nature based Solutions and catchment-scale solutions, strengthen education, awareness, investigation and enforcement around water quality, and accelerate investment in wastewater treatment infrastructure. It must also continue to support the agricultural sector in transitioning to more sustainable practices, through advisory and capital investment programmes like the Sustainable Catchment Programme, funded by DAERA and delivered by The Rivers Trust, as well as government/landowner co-design of the proposed Farming with Nature agri-environmental scheme.

“Disappointingly, the latest Programme for Government which sets the strategic direction for the NI Executive and government departments up to 2027, lacks firm, measurable targets for improving water quality and reducing pollution, which raises concerns about accountability and effectiveness.”

“While the PfG acknowledges the underfunding of wastewater infrastructure, it fails to provide a clear financial plan or timeline for upgrading treatment facilities, leaving many rivers, loughs and lakes vulnerable to continued degradation. This also undermines Northern Ireland’s ability to deliver much needed housing, despite this being another PfG commitment, and sustainable economic growth for all regions across Northern Ireland. It is disappointingly another example of how our leaders have failed to see how spending money on improving our freshwater environment is an investment now and for future generations, not a cost for a luxury we can afford to ignore, as a healthy freshwater environment is foundational for all other aspects of our lives, society and economy.

“The decision to delay consultations on a Climate Action Plan for NI to later this year is extremely concerning, as immediate action is required to prevent further climate-change-driven deterioration of Northern Ireland’s freshwater ecosystems and the impacts this has on all our lives. Furthermore, while Lough Neagh has been prioritised because of the visibility of the pollution crisis, there remains no comprehensive roadmap for improving governance across all Northern Ireland water catchments where equally serious problems are emerging or have already established.

“The Rivers Trust calls on the Northern Ireland Executive, through the PfG, to make a meaningful commitment to our water environment by setting out clear and ambitious water quality targets and timelines and funding for achieving these, providing multi-annual funding to provide support and training to help farmers agricultural pollution at source and make a sustainable and just transition towards water-friendly farming, urgently investing in waste water infrastructure and the monitoring and fixing of sewage spills, and accelerating climate action through immediate emissions reduction strategies. NI Water must be properly funded to deliver its commitments for wastewater infrastructure upgrades and for delivery of its Living with Water programmes for Belfast and Derry-Londonderry, alongside improved governance and accountability through independent monitoring and public reporting.

“Let me be clear that we have run out of road as far as our water environment is concerned. We are dealing with a serious water quality crisis in Northern Ireland that is already impacting on wider society and our economy. The time for action is now. We call on our politicians and policymakers to turn long-term ambition into urgent and meaningful reality by delivering tangible improvements to our freshwater environment that will benefit nature, people, and the economy,” Mark Horton concluded.

Northern Ireland Programme for Government

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