This funding highlights the critical role of research and innovation in addressing climate, pollution and biodiversity challenges, said EPA’s Dr Eimear Cotter.
Ireland’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has today (19 June) announced research awards totalling €6.9m for 11 projects that aim to tackle climate change-related environmental, health and economic challenges.
Funded projects include an investigation into noise pollution and its impacts on health and the environment; an exploration of young people’s attitudes to climate change; and a study of how sea level rise could impact Irish population dynamics.
Dublin City University (DCU) leads the way with four awards, while Trinity College Dublin received three, and the universities of Galway, Cork and Maynooth and Mary Immaculate College each received one award.
This latest round brings the total research funding announced by the EPA this year to €21.4m. In February, the agency announced €14.5m for 25 new projects that target knowledge gaps in climate research. A full list of the awards can be found on the EPA website.
“The increased scale of research funding being announced by the EPA in 2025 reflects the critical role that research and innovation play in addressing climate change, environmental pollution and biodiversity decline,” said Dr Eimear Cotter, director of the EPA’s Office of Evidence and Assessment.
“This new EPA funding will help develop innovative solutions to support Ireland’s response to these challenges.”
Snapshot of the research projects
DCU chemical scientist Dr David O’Connor received more than €650,000 to monitor and analyse bioaerosols to understand their effects on respiratory health and how these may shift with climate change.
Bioaerosols are particles released from terrestrial and marine ecosystems such as soil, water and sewage into the atmosphere. They are an important transmission route for infectious agents and have gained wider attention since the emergence and spread of Covid-19.
“By combining detailed monitoring with health data and climate projections, we aim to give people the tools to anticipate and reduce allergy and asthma impacts – helping individuals and healthcare systems adapt proactively to environmental change,” O’Connor said.
Also at DCU, geographer Dr Susan Hegarty has received more than €630,000 to develop a set of tools and protocols to ensure the success of citizen science projects for water quality monitoring.
“More and more we are seeing communities who want to act to safeguard our natural environment,” Hegarty said.
Susan Hegarty. Image: DCU
“Groups and individuals are gathering data on various environmental parameters, but without an overarching coordination of this valuable data. This multidisciplinary project will create a framework so that, for the first time, communities across Ireland can work together to monitor our freshwater bodies.”
Trinity engineer Prof John Kennedy received nearly €580,000 for the Noise 2050 project, which will use acoustic modelling, sensor networks and citizen science to develop noise reduction strategies that support public health.
“This project recognises the need to deliver a healthier environment which is enabled by innovation, grounded in science, and shaped by the people it serves,” said Kennedy.
Statistician Prof Niamh Cahill from Maynooth University develops statistical models to assess and interpret indicators of climate change including sea-level extremes (unusually high or low water levels). She received nearly €520,000 to research Irish population exposure to sea level extremes.
The UN has called rising sea levels “a global crisis threatening the lives and livelihood of 1bn people worldwide”. According to analysis led by NASA, global sea levels rose faster than expected in 2024, with the rate of annual sea level rise more than doubling since 1993, which highlights how research into this area is both timely and important.
Time to get practical about climate
Last month, the EPA published updated greenhouse gas emissions projections for Ireland and found that, if all climate measures are implemented, the country will deliver emissions reduction of up to 23pc by 2030 – well below the target of 51pc as designated in the Climate Action Bill 2021 and below the EU target of 42pc.
The buildings, electricity, industry and transport sectors are all set to exceed their emissions ceilings for 2030.
The EPA called for additional measures and accelerated implementation of existing measures to meet both national and EU targets.
Speaking at the time, EPA director general Laura Burke said that the report highlighted “the economy-wide effort needed to decarbonise our society” and said there must be a shift in focus to practical actions to reduce emissions.
“As we get closer to 2030 and receive more information on the impact of agreed policies and measures, it is concerning to see projected reductions and lack of progress in the delivery of actions to reduce emissions including in the electrification of our transport sector and the expansion of renewable electricity powering our homes and businesses and the implementation of carbon reduction measures in agriculture.
“Momentum is building for Ireland’s low-carbon society, but we need to accelerate it and scale up the transition.”
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