A new environmental research centre at IT Sligo will strengthen the Institute’s role in tackling regional and national challenges in ecology, sustainability and how best to manage natural resources.
Launching the Centre for Environmental Research Innovation and Sustainability (CERIS) Micheál Ó Cinnéide, Director at the Environmental Protection Agency, said it was a timely development in a period when Ireland must ensure that natural resources are used wisely.
CERIS will act as a driver for strengthening the Institute’s research capacity and promoting further collaboration with other third-level institutions, organisations and industries.
Dr. Frances Lucy, the Centre’s Director said: “CERIS provides a new important platform for the development and sustainability of environmental research at IT Sligo. While we have a long-standing track record in this research area, it is now imperative to embed this within a strategic research centre.”
Environment and engineering researchers at IT Sligo work on a range of projects that are funded by national organisations including Science Foundation Ireland, Inland Fisheries Ireland, Teagasc, Enterprise Ireland and the Irish Research Council, and international companies.
Current projects include research on identification and management of high nature value farmland in Ireland; bog rehabilitation research; zebra mussel control and management; acoustic fish deterrents; development of biofuels from marine sources; activated sludge wastewater treatment optimisation; and a project on moving IT Sligo towards a world class green campus.
In June 2014, CERIS will run a training workshop on Aquatic Invasive Species for American researchers, industry and state agencies at Buffalo State College in United States.
Professor Terri Scott, President of IT Sligo, who jointly launched the Centre, said it represented a new era in environmental and ecological research at the Institute.
She said: “CERIS builds on the track record and achievement of IT Sligo’s researchers in environmental science and sustainability and it will enable the Institute to increase our already very significant contribution to tackling major issues that are highly relevant to the wider community .”
Mr. Ó Cinnéide stated that CERIS would build on more than two decades of IT Sligo’s excellence in teaching and outreach in Environmental Studies and Ecology which had helped to train and inspire many graduates now working in State agencies, local councils and industry.
He added: “The setting up of CERIS is very timely for Sligo and the North West region as we face into the challenges of building a more sustainable Ireland in this time of recovery. Ireland and the region need to look at the environmental aspects of energy, agriculture, marine resources, water and soil to ensure that these resources are used wisely for the benefit of future generations.”
Dr Lucy told the launch ceremony that IT Sligo students undertaking environmental science degrees would have the opportunity of being involved in CERIS research in their final year. The Centre would also promote research links between undergraduates and postgraduates.
