Water tracing in Ireland: a review with special reference to the Cuilcagh Karst

Abstract

As approximately half of Ireland is underlain by Carboniferous Limestone, streams which loose their water underground and which have their origins in or are supplemented by risings, are common. In many instances it may be of scientific and economic interest, and of practical value, to know the origin of a rising's water or the destination of water which is lost underground. As surface and underground watersheds rarely coincide this can only be achieved by tracing experiments using artificially marked materials. The purpose of this paper is to review the state of the art in Ireland, to suggest modifications to the most widely used tracing technique, and to provide suggestions for future work. Most experiments have been undertaken in the mid-west and the majority appear to have been somewhat simplistic, so that few data are available on underground velocities or subterranean drainage systems. In order to demonstrate the ease with which greater amounts of data may be obtained the results of recent research in the Cuilcagh karst of Cos. Cavan and Fermanagh are also presented. These experiments provide a pattern which might form a basis for future work in other areas.