WATER CATCHMENT AEEAS IN IRELAND 287 



the amount disclosed being 15,282 acres, owned by nine 

 local authorities. Only three of these own a considerable 

 proportion of their gathering grounds, namely, Belfast, 

 which owns 13,746 acres; Portadown and Banbridge 

 Joint Waterworks Board, which owns 943 acres ; and 

 Dublin, which owns 348 acres in addition to 712 acres of 

 reservoir sites. The portions of their catchment areas 

 owned by Eathmines, Drogheda, Lisburn, Holywood, and 

 Waterford are very small. Scarcely any afforestation has 

 been attempted, the only instances of municipal effort in 

 this direction being 50 acres of old and 5 acres of new 

 plantations on the Vartry area, belonging to the Dublin 

 Corporation, and 50 acres of plantations made since 1900 

 by the Urban District Council of Rathmines on their catch- 

 ment area at Glennasmol. The afforestation of the 

 gathering grounds of Ireland cannot be effected until the 

 areas are compulsorily acquired by the Urban District 

 Councils and other local authorities concerned. 



I. Ulster 



Gathering grounds, 41,253 acres, supplying twenty-one 

 local authorities and one private owner (acreage of Letter- 

 kenny, Keady, and Bally money gathering grounds unknown 

 and not included). 14,752 acres owned by four local 

 authorities. 



Belfast obtains its water supply from three catchment 

 areas, as follows : 



The Woodburn area, 3 to 4 miles north-west of Carrick- 

 fergus, and between 300 to 1000 feet elevation, contains 

 6937 acres, of which 3657 acres, formerly farm lands, 

 were acquired by the Water Commissioners to prevent 

 pollution, and were cleared of inhabitants, being now only 

 used for meadow and grazing. About 70 acres are 

 wooded. The unpurchased part is moorland and rough 

 grazing. 



The Stonyford catchment area, 5 miles north-west of 



