The Shannon Estuary in Ireland () 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 enviro ...
where the
River Shannon flows into the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
. The estuary has
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...
City at its head and its seaward limits are marked by
Loop Head to the north and
Kerry Head to the south. The estuary defines the main boundary between
County Kerry
County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...
/
County Limerick to the south and
County Clare
County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...
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 ap ...
(SAC) incorporates the estuary and is in length, running from
Killaloe to Loop Head. The Shannon has a high
tidal range, up to around at Limerick docks, such that the estuary has been considered for tidal power schemes, despite occasionally experiencing a
tidal bore.
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 on the south side of the Shannon Estuary. However, it was realised that developing technology would require a permanent
runway
In aviation, a runway is an elongated, rectangular surface designed for the landing and takeoff of an aircraft. Runways may be a human-made surface (often asphalt concrete, asphalt, concrete, or a mixture of both) or a natural surface (sod, ...
and airport.
In 1936, the
government of Ireland
The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Mini ...
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. From then, passengers were moved from the flying boats in Foynes to the land planes based at Shannon Airport. By 1945 the existing runways at Shannon were extended to allow
transatlantic flights 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 and at airport jetty. It provides marine services, including
pilotage and
towage to privately owned facilities at
Moneypoint,
Tarbert Island 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. Some 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 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'') are seen in the estuary.
Fishing
An
eel trap and transport scheme is in force on the River Shannon as part of a management programme instigated following the discovery of diminishing eel numbers on the River Shannon. The scheme ensures safe passage for young eels between
Killaloe Bridge and the Shannon estuary.
Though the Shannon estuary the fishing industry is now depleted, though at one time it provided employment for hundreds of men along its length. At
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...
, fishermen based on Clancy's Strand used the
gandelow to catch
salmon
Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
. 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 was used to catch
herring as well as drift nets for salmon.
See also
*
Deer Island (Ireland)
*
River Fergus
*
Wild Atlantic Way
References
External links
Shannon Foynes Port CompanyShannon Airport
{{coord, 52, 35, N, 9, 18, W, type:waterbody_region:IE, display=title
Estuaries of Ireland
Rivers of County Limerick
River Shannon