Galway’s wetlands celebrated on 3D

According to the digital StoryMap, there are 442 wetlands in the locality

THE wetlands of North East Galway are depicted in text and 3D format in the form of a StoryMap launched by Galway County Council last week.

The StoryMap was created by the Wetland Surveys Ireland Ltd company, who carried out a study of the wetlands located in the 172,885 hectares that the North East Galway area covers. The official launch coincided with World Wetlands Day, which was celebrated on Wednesday, February 2.

A wetland is defined as a piece of land where the water covers over the soil or is present at or near the surface of the soil, and according to the digital StoryMap, there are 442 wetlands in the locality.

Lough Corrib is the second largest lake on the island after Lough Neagh and is populated by wet woodland, callow grassland and raised bog.

The various features of the lake and its surrounds are covered in the StoryMap, along with the raised bogs that populate the North East Galway landscape.

Drainage and cutting of these bogs, planting of forestry and agricultural reclamation of land has led to there being only one per cent of active raised bog habitat left in Ireland. Projects such as the Living Bog in Carrownagappul Bog near Mountbellew are hoping to restore the natural habitats of these peatlands.

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