Dublin City Council Celebrates Success of Rainscapes Project

Dublin City Council is pleased to announce the successful completion of an essential element of the Rainscapes project which will reduce polluted Urban Runoff, rainwater from road and footpaths, from entering the Santry River. Councillor Supriya Singh, deputising for the Lord Mayor of Dublin Councillor Ray McAdam, today opened the Harmonstown element of the Rainscapes Project at McAuley Park, Ribh Road and Lein Road.

The project also supports health and wellbeing, introduces informal play areas, attracts desirable wildlife, helps to reduce flood risk and help reduce the impact of climate change by regenerating the urban landscape. In addition, it demonstrates how green infrastructure solutions can work in existing urban areas.

“Rainscapes is more than just an engineering feat; it’s a living example of our commitment to a greener, more sustainable Dublin,” said Councillor Singh. 

Dublin’s rivers, estuaries, and coastal waters are under constant pressure due to urban runoff. This poses a threat to wildlife; on land, in the rivers and the sea; and to their ecosystems. In addition to this, Dublin faces challenges from flooding as a result of climate change. The Rainscapes Project is designed to address these issues within the context of urban intensification. 

It does this by creating new green spaces, enhancing existing ones, and transforming some hard surfaces to landscaped or permeable areas. This allows rainwater from roads and other hard surfaces to flow into these areas during rainfall, where it is stored for a short period of time. This approach helps remove and naturally breakdown pollutants and slow the flow of rainwater to the Dodder and Santry rivers, helping to improve their water quality. 

Under the Rainscapes project, Dublin City Council looked at 9 pilot sites in the Dodder and Santry catchments to demonstrate green infrastructure in different streetscapes, which will treat and slow urban runoff before it entered the rivers. The project also monitored the performance of the green infrastructure measures to establish their effectiveness in treating pollutants and reducing urban runoff. In addition to improving water quality, green infrastructure helps manage flood risk by slowing water flow to rivers, creating more pleasant environments for the community, fostering biodiversity, and helping urban areas adapt to the impacts of climate change. 

The Rainscapes Project is one of the largest urban Nature-Based Solutions retrofit projects in Ireland and the UK. Dublin City Council collaborating with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage funded this project as part of its commitment to comply with the Water Framework Directive and to quantify the benefits of this approach. The council now hopes to expand this successful methodology to other locations in the near future.

***Photos from today’s launch will be provided by Fennell Photography***

 
ENDS 

Notes to the Editor:

Rainscapes Project Locations.

River Dodder Catchment – Herbert Cottages, Ballsbridge; Eglington Road, Donnybrook, Milltown Road, Dartry

River Santry Catchment: Dunree Park, Donaghmede, Section of Springdale Road, Donaghmede, Brookfield and Westpark, Donaghmede, Sections of the McAuley Park & Drive, Lein Road & Park, Ribh Road Harmonstown.

Further information: River Santry and River Dodder Rainscapes | Dublin City Council