Environmental Protection Agency of Ireland (EPA)

The Environmental Protection Agency of Ireland (EPA) is an independent public body. EPA’s mission is to promote and implement the highest practicable standards of environmental protection and management that embrace the principles of sustainable and balanced development. The main responsibilities of the EPA currently include:

• Monitoring and reporting on quality of environment;
• License and regulation of industries, waste disposal operations and large fuel storage installations;
• Implementation and enforcement of regulations on the use and release of genetically modified organisms; and
• Funding and coordination of environmental research.

Effective management of the environment is increasingly science-driven. Through its research and development programme, the Environmental Protection Agency is generating the knowledge and expertise needed to protect and manage Ireland's environment. Over the period 2007-2013, the EPA’s research programme STRIVE has provided approximately 100 M€ funding for environmental research and development to colleges, research organisations and private companies. The STRIVE programme is managed by the EPA on behalf of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. The EPA Research Programme (2014-2020) will aim at maintaining a vibrant and relevant environmental research programme to influence policy, identify pressures and develop solutions to environmental challenges. The Research Programme will be focused on addressing the major environmental challenges of Climate Change, Water and Sustainable Environment. The EPA currently runs a national programme supporting applied and/or basic research on water sciences and technologies, and has participated/participates in water related networks and projects in the Framework Programme. Among them, SKEP (FP6), ENVHEALTH ERA-NET (FP7), CIRCLE2 (FP7) and CIRCLE (FP6), WatEUr CSA (FP7) and WaterWorks2014 (H2020). The EPA is involved in the Water JPI (co-chairing the JPI since November 2014) and also in the JPI Connecting Climate Knowledge for Europe (CliK’EU).

Website: www.epa.ie

Matt CROWE
Function	Director
Division	Office of Evidence and Assessment
Email	name.surname(at)epa.ie
Phone	+ 353 539160600
Areas of expertise	Dr. Crowe is currently Director of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Evidence and Assessment which includes the EPA’s programmes for water management, environmental research, environmental informatics, climate science, strategic environmental assessment, state of the environment assessment and reporting and liaison with the European Environment Agency. He holds a B.Sc. and Ph.D. in biochemistry from University College, Dublin and has worked with the Irish EPA since 1995. He was appointed to the Board of the EPA in 2010 and from 2010 to 2012 he served as the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Communications and Corporate Services with responsibility for communications, human resources, finance, corporate governance, organisational training and development, buildings, IT and strategic planning. He served as the EPA’s Head of Internal Audit between 2007 and 2010 as well as running the EPA’s communications, strategy and corporate governance programmes. He was instrumental in the establishment of an Office of Environmental Enforcement in the EPA in 2003 and chaired the National Environmental Enforcement Network from 2004 to 2007. His main scientific areas of interest are water protection and management and waste management and he has run programmes and projects in these and other areas during his tenure at the EPA. Prior to joining the EPA he worked in Vancouver, Canada, for five years, conducting contract research in applied environmental sciences.
Role in Water JPI activities	Governing Board representative - voting member

Alice WEMAERE
Function	EEPA Research Programme
Email	name.surname(at)epa.ie
Phone	+ 353 1 268 0146
Areas of expertise	Dr Alice Wemaere has a BSc. and MSc. in Chemical Engineering and a MSc in Environmental Sciences. She holds a PhD looking at Lake eutrophication and GIS modelling of nutrient loadings from a catchment into surface waters. Alice has been working with the EPA Research programme since 2004. She is currently managing the EPA Water & Soils research programmes and has in the past managed the EPA Research Publications and website. She is the national contact point for Horizon2020 Societal Challenge 5 (Climate Action, Environment, Resource Efficiency & Raw Materials).
Role in Water JPI activities	National Contact Point for the Water JPI Technical Advisor of the Governing Board representative Task Force on Alignment (Partner) Task Force on Interactions with Horizon EU (Partner) WaterWorks2014 ERA-NET Cofund partner, WaterWorks2015 ERA-NET Cofund and WaterWorks2017 ERA-NET Cofund: Funding partner and Task Leader IC4WATER CSA: Funding partner and Task Leader

Lisa SHEILS
Function	EPA Research Programme
Email	name.surname(at)epa.ie
Phone	+ 353 1 206 6947
Areas of expertise	Lisa Sheils has been working in the EPA Catchments Unit and the EPA Research programme since 2006. She holds qualifications in Environmental Science (BSc Hons), and Masters in Soil Science and Physics, Geographical Information Sciences (GIS), Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Project Management. She has managed the EPA Water, Environmental Technologies & Cleaner Production programmes in the past. She also worked as Project Coordinator in the South Eastern River Basin District (SERBD), in the first Water Framework Directive (WFD) cycle. She also worked in GIS with Waterford City Council in water conservation management and for many years as a Water/Pollution Inspector and Catchment Manager for Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA). Previously she carried out soil research with CIPAV and CIAT in Colombia, South America and Climate Change research in the University of Lisbon, Portugal.
Role in Water JPI activities	Supporting WaterWorks2014, WaterWorks2015, WaterWorks2017 and IC4WATER related activities.