The results of the Counties Longford & Roscommon Wetland Study 2017 have been published. The survey was commissioned by Longford and Roscommon County Councils and undertaken by ecologists from Wetland Surveys Ireland and Foss Environmental Consulting. The survey aimed to identify all wetland areas in the two counties to better inform land use planning and sustainable development strategies.
Wetlands can be defined as areas of land that are wet enough for long enough to support a variety of plants and animals that are specially adapted to wet conditions. These wetland areas in Longford and Roscommon include a range of wildlife habitats such as raised and cutover bogs, marshes, swamps, turloughs, wet woodlands, lakes and ponds.
By carrying out a review of digital maps and previous studies, and undertaking an aerial photographic and subsoil analysis of the two counties the Counties Longford & Roscommon Wetland Study identified thirty two wetland habitat types occurring in 676 individual sites in Roscommon and 281 sites in Longford. As part of the study of the two counties, information on these wetlands has been collated into wetland map dataset.
Preliminary site boundaries have been mapped for wetland sites identified during the study, providing an estimate of the extent of wetlands within these counties. The area of wetland sites mapped in Longford covered an area of 203 km2 (18.6% of land area) while wetland sites in Roscommon covered an area of 580 km2 (21.9% of land area).
The report highlights the absence of detailed information on many sites and the urgent need for targeted field surveys to gain a better understanding of the wetland resource within the county and to ensure that those sites of highest importance are protected.
The Counties Longford & Roscommon Wetland Study 2017 is an action of the County Longford & Roscommon Heritage and Biodiversity Plans. The reports is available from the Heritage Office in Longford and Roscommon County Councils.
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