By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally.

CSO data

Status: Not achieving

6.3.1 By 2019, 98.6% of urban wastewater received at least primary treatment.

6.3.2 Good ambient water quality was recorded in 59% of water bodies in Ireland. The proportion of rivers with good ambient water quality was 53%, while 50% of lakes and 92% of groundwater bodies had a good ambient water quality.  Over a third (34%) of  rivers have unsatisfactory phosphate concentrations.  One quarter (26%) of sites are showing an increasing phosphate trend for the period 2017-2019.  Over a quarter of lakes (27%) had unsatisfactory total phosphorus concentrations with 22% showing an increasing trend.  Over a fifth (22%) of Groundwater sites have high (>25mg/l N03) nitrate concentrations and three sites (2%) exceed the drinking water standard (>50 mg/l N03)  Loads of total nitrogen and total phosphorus to the marine environment from our rivers have increased by 24% (13,559 tonnes) and 31% (338 tonnes) respectively since 2012-2014.