They’re known to botanists and scientists as blue dots – a data base of the cleanest waters which provide a refuge for animal and plant life once commonplace but now in decline. And it turns out, Connemara is a hotspot for blue dots.

Because according to the experts, the region has long hosted some of our cleanest and most sensitive rivers, lakes and estuaries.

And these pristine waters form the scenic backdrop to a new video entitled “Connemara Blue Dots” made by Crow Crag Productions and released at the weekend by the Blue Dot Catchments Programme.

The initiative is supported by Galway County Council and the Local Authority Waters Programme.

Under the European Union Water Framework Directive, Ireland must prevent the ecological deterioration of all surface waters.

This means that water bodies that are in very healthy ecological condition or ‘High Status’ should not decline to ‘Good Status’ or worse.

The EPA has identified the waters in Ireland that should have a high-status objective, and these are more commonly known as Blue Dot waters or “Blue Dots”. These Blue Dot Waters include rivers, lakes, estuaries, and coastal waters.

“The Blue Dot Catchments Programme is a collaborative programme being delivered by a range of agencies, aimed at focusing resources towards the protection and restoration of our High Status Objective or Blue Dot Waterbodies,” said Blue Dot Scientist Paul O’Callaghan.

The video, launched for Water Heritage Day last Sunday, marked the first of many engagements in the Connemara area promoting these waters and the sustainable management of these catchment for the communities living there and the abundance of biodiversity they support.

Schools’ engagements across the Connemara region on Blue Dots will take place this September lead by outdoor education specialists Streamscapes and Veri, supported by Galway County Council, Blue Dots Catchment Programme & LAWPRO.

Funding is also available for communities’ groups to undertake projects on their local Blue Dot Waterbody.

Grants can be sourced for simple awareness raising initiatives like signage, training, art installations, and murals to practical measures like fencing, trees planting or drain blocking to help protect these waterbodies. See www.lawaters.ie to find the Community Water Officer in your area.

Pictured: An aerial view of one of Connemara’s Blue Dot rivers. Photo courtesy of Crow Crag Productions