The Shannon Estuary ( gle, Inbhear na Sionainne) is a large

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

where the River Shannon flows into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. The estuary has

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

City at its head and its seaward limits are marked by

Loop Head Loop Head (), is a headland on the north side of the mouth of the River Shannon, in County Clare in the west of Ireland. Loop Head is marked by a prominent lighthouse. The opposite headland on the south side of the Shannon is Kerry Head. The ...

to the north and

Kerry Head Kerry Head is a headland located in County Kerry, Ireland that stretches into the Atlantic Ocean just north of Banna Strand. On the southern edge of the headland sits Ballyheigue. Kerry Head separates the Shannon Estuary, on the north side, ...

to the south. The estuary defines the main boundary between County Kerry/

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province , subd ...

to the south and

County Clare County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,81 ...

to the north. The length of the Shannon Estuary is . The Lower River Shannon

Special Area of Conservation A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and a ...

(SAC) incorporates the estuary and is in length, running from Killaloe to Loop Head. The Shannon has a high

tidal range Tidal range is the difference in height between high tide and low tide. Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and Sun and the rotation of Earth. Tidal range depends on time and location. ...

, up to around at Limerick docks, such that the estuary has been considered for tidal power schemes, despite occasionally experiencing a

tidal bore Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (serv ...

. In the second half of the 19th century about 65 km² of the estuary's lowlands have been embanked and reclaimed, largely for agricultural purposes.

Aircraft

In the late 1930s, transatlantic air traffic was dominated by flying boats, and a flying boat terminal was located at

Foynes Foynes (; ) is a town and major port in County Limerick in the midwest of Ireland, located at the edge of hilly land on the southern bank of the Shannon Estuary. The population of the town was 520 as of the 2016 census. Foynes's role as seap ...

on the south side of the Shannon Estuary. However, it was realised that developing technology would require a permanent

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt, concre ...

and airport. In 1936, the

government of Ireland The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The gover ...

confirmed that it would develop a site at Rineanna for the country's first transatlantic airport. The land on which the airport was to be built was bog, and on 8 October 1936 work began to drain the land. By 1942 a serviceable airport had been established and was named

Shannon Airport Shannon Airport ( ga, Aerfort na Sionainne) is an international airport located in County Clare in the Republic of Ireland. It is adjacent to the Shannon Estuary and lies halfway between Ennis and Limerick. The airport is the third busiest ai ...

. From then, passengers were moved from the flying boats in Foynes to the land planes based in Shannon Airport. By 1945 the existing runways at Shannon were extended to allow

transatlantic flight A transatlantic flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe, Africa, South Asia, or the Middle East to North America, Central America, or South America, or ''vice versa''. Such flights have been made by fixed-wing air ...

s to land, completely bypassing the need for Foynes.

Port

Shannon Foynes Port Company is the port authority for the entire estuary. It owns facilities at Foynes Dock,

Limerick City Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

and at airport jetty. It provides marine services, including

pilotage Piloting or pilotage is the process of navigating on water or in the air using fixed points of reference on the sea or on land, usually with reference to a nautical chart or aeronautical chart to obtain a fix of the position of the vessel or air ...

and towage to privately owned facilities at

Moneypoint Moneypoint power station () is Ireland's largest electricity generation station (output 915 MW) and only coal-fired power station. Commissioned between 1985 and 1987, it is located on the River Shannon near Kilrush, County Clare. It was constr ...

Tarbert Island Tarbert (, from an Old Irish term meaning "draw-boat", i.e. portage) is a town in the north of County Kerry, with woodland to the south and the Shannon estuary to the north. It lies on the N69 coast road that runs along the estuary from Lim ...

and Aughinish. The maritime history of the estuary is catalogued and on display in exhibits at the Maritime Section of the Foynes Flying Boat Museum

Sustainable exploitation

The Shannon Estuary is an immensely important asset and one of the most valuable natural resources in Ireland and the Mid-West Region in particular – the fringe lands and the marine area both provide space and location for development, activities and opportunities to progress economic, social and environmental growth within the Region. Recent initiatives, such as the Strategic Integrated Framework Plan (SIFP) for the Shannon Estuary 2013-2020, aim to provide an inter-jurisdictional land and marine based framework plan to guide the future development and management of the Shannon Estuary. It was commissioned in 2011 by Clare County Council, Kerry County Council, Limerick City and County Councils, Shannon Development and the Shannon Foynes Port Company. The project is being overseen by a multi-agency steering group composed of the above and other key stakeholders with an interest in the Estuary. Calculations of

tidal power Tidal power or tidal energy is harnessed by converting energy from tides into useful forms of power, mainly electricity using various methods. Although not yet widely used, tidal energy has the potential for future electricity generation. Ti ...

show that 111-367 GWh/year could be extracted from the estuary, compared to 2.6 TWh/year for the island.

Biology

Zoology: Bottlenose dolphins (''Tursiops truncatus'') (Montagu 1821) are seen in the estuary.

Fishing

eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

trap and transport scheme is in force on the River Shannon as part of a management programme instigated following the discovery of reducing eel numbers on the River Shannon. The scheme ensures safe passage for young eels between

Killaloe Bridge Killaloe Bridge is a road bridge over the River Shannon between Ballina in County Tipperary and Killaloe, County Clare in Ireland. Built on the site of an earlier structure (dating to c.1650), the eighteenth-century bridge has thirteen arches ...

and the Shannon estuary. Though the Shannon estuary fishing industry is now depleted, at one time it provided employment for hundreds of men along its length. At

, fishermen based on Clancy's Strand used the

Gandelow The gandelow is a traditional wooden fishing boat used on the River Shannon on the west coast of Ireland. The boat has been in use by fishing communities since at least the 17th century, mostly for catching salmon and cutting reeds. The gandelow ...

to catch

Salmon Salmon () is the common name for several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae, which are native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (genus ''Salmo'') and North Pacific (genus '' Oncorhy ...

. In the 1920s the construction of a dam at Ardnacrusha severely impacted salmon breeding and that, and the introduction of quotas, had by the 1950s caused salmon fishing to cease. However, recreational fishing still goes on. Further down the estuary at Kilrush the

Currach A currach ( ) is a type of Irish boat with a wooden frame, over which animal skins or hides were once stretched, though now canvas is more usual. It is sometimes anglicised as "curragh". The construction and design of the currach are unique ...

was used to catch Herring as well as drift netting for salmon.

External links

Shannon Cruises- boating on the river that flows into the Estuary

Shannon Foynes Port Company

Shannon Airport

References

* http://europeaneel.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/chapter-2-study-area.pdf {{coord, 52, 35, N, 9, 18, W, type:waterbody_region:IE, display=title Estuaries of Ireland Rivers of County Limerick River Shannon