Ecocentric Structures to Protect Lough Neagh

DOWNLOAD

Northern Ireland’s Lough Neagh (pronounced “lock nay”) is the biggest freshwater lake in the United Kingdom. With a surface area of 148 square miles, it’s about 19 miles long and 9 miles wide, supplying 40.7% of Northern Ireland's drinking water. Despite its rich biodiversity and cultural significance to the people of Northern Ireland, the health of Lough Neagh has been deteriorating for decades, including toxic bursts of algal blooms, poor water quality, and agricultural runoff. We are calling for a shift in governance and management of the Lough through public and private law mechanisms, including a demand for national legal recognition, creation of a nature guardianship company for the Lough, and/or non-binding declarations and initiatives to affirm the inherent rights of Lough Neagh without a formal legal status.

A Voice for Lough Neagh

Lough Neagh, as a living and breathing entity, has suffered decades of decline and neglect. If it continues being overlooked in this way, we will see the ripple impact of biodiversity loss – phosphorus pollution will grow, eel fisheries will significantly decline, and toxin levels will exceed recreational safety limits. Now is the time to take action to restore and protect the Lough for present and future generations.

Decades of Decline & Neglect

A Historic Moment — Lough Neagh Owning Itself

The community in and around the Lough care deeply for it, and it holds cultural, national, and spiritual significance to them. Lough Neagh is currently owned by a private individual who seeks to transfer his ownership of the bed and soil to the people of Northern Ireland, specifically to this very same Lough Neagh stakeholder community. In order to support a harmonious and just transition of this intrinsically valuable living entity, the transfer needs to focus on the Lough owning itself. Self-ownership will promote democratic engagement and participation of communities and citizens. The prospect of the transfer of ownership of the Lough bed and foreshore presents a historic moment of decision to transform our very understanding of ownership in the context of the Lough, and with wider lessons for political ecology, Transitional Justice on the island of Ireland, and environmental governance aligned with Nature’s laws. By granting Lough Neagh rights (and thereby protection), its health and state can be restored to thriving.

The discussion paper supports emergent consultations and conversations designed to bring about inclusive and far reaching changes in the governance, guardianship, and protection of Lough Neagh, using innovative mechanisms such as a citizens assembly to ensure maximum legitimacy and real participation grounded in peace.