The Mill River Conservation Group

08/06/2026

Well that's our collaboration project complete with Scoil Mhuire Buncrana YSI 2026 and Buncrana Tidy Towns Initiative .with the fantastic art work provided by scoil Mhuire talented artists and the hard work of all the volunteers involved, we have together improved a wonderful little amenity that is the Mill river walk. We left nothing to waste even when it came to the very pallets our natural path materials arrived on were turned into something useful. Apart from some planting we must do we hope those who dander along the Mill River walk enjoy it and see what a special place it is. Also Thank you riparan land owners for allowing us to complete our project.

05/06/2026

As we celebrate World Environment Day and welcome the start of the Tidy Towns judging season, it's a timely reminder that protecting our environment begins with small actions close to home.

One of the messages we regularly promote through our environmental education and stewardship work is simple:
Think at the Sink.
What goes down our sinks, drains, and toilets doesn't simply disappear. It can eventually find its way into our rivers, beaches, and coastal waters, affecting wildlife, habitats, and water quality from source to sea.

As a community, we all have a role to play in keeping Buncrana looking its best, from the Main Street to our parks, rivers, beaches, and green spaces, bin your litter or take it home.

The Mill River Conservation Group will continue its Community Environmental Stewardship Programme throughout the year, caring for and monitoring our local river environment through practical conservation, citizen science, education, and community engagement.

Keep an eye on our page for upcoming training workshops and opportunities to get involved.

Together, we can make a difference — from stream to shore.

Buncrana Tidy Towns Initiative Clean Coasts

04/06/2026

Keep the Momentum Going for Buncrana's Environment!

Following a busy spring of community clean-ups, and environmental stewardship projects with the these collaboration with YSI students in Scoil Mhuire Buncrana, and there is another great opportunity to get involved and make a difference.

Join Buncrana Tidy Towns at Ladies Bay on Saturday 13th June at 10:30am for a morning of learning, community action, and coastal care.

The tidy towns initiative team will welcome Auriel Robinson, Clean Coasts Regional Officer for County Donegal, who will deliver a short talk on coastal and marine biodiversity and discuss the important "Think Before You Flush" and "Think Before You Pour" campaigns, delivered in partnership with Uisce Éireann.

Following the talk, volunteers will take part in a community beach clean at Ladies Bay.

📍 Ladies Bay Car Park, Buncrana
📅 Saturday 13th June
🕥 10:30am

Everyone is welcome – adults, children, families, community groups, and anyone interested in protecting our rivers, coastline, wildlife, and local environment.

This is also a wonderful opportunity to meet Auriel, who recently took up her role as Regional Officer for Donegal, and to learn more about the work of Clean Coasts and how you can get involved in future events around the county.

Let's continue working together from stream to shore for a cleaner, healthier Buncrana and surrounding coastline.

Buncrana Tidy Towns Initiative Clean Coasts

27/05/2026

It's the weather for a us having a wee clean up but in the morning it's not to warm.

23/05/2026

The old dam on the Mill River, Buncrana, Co. Donegal
A Barrier in the River – More Than Just Concrete
This ageing structure on the Mill River is a reminder of how historic modifications can continue to affect rivers long after their original purpose has ended.
River barriers and obsolete weirs can:
Restrict or delay fish migration to spawning and feeding grounds
Interrupt natural river flow and sediment transport
Alter habitats upstream and downstream
Affect macroinvertebrates and river biodiversity
Influence water quality, oxygen levels, and channel processes
Reduce ecological connectivity across the catchment
Migratory fish populations in Europe have declined dramatically over recent decades, with river fragmentation recognised as one of the major pressures. In Ireland, barrier mitigation and removal are increasingly being prioritised to reconnect rivers and restore ecosystems.
The Mill River is more than water flowing through Buncrana — it is a living corridor connecting habitats, wildlife, and communities.
Understanding these structures is the first step toward asking important questions:
• Does this barrier still serve a purpose?
• How does it affect fish passage?
• What impact does it have on sediment, flooding, and habitat?
• Could nature-based restoration improve river connectivity?
Healthy rivers need movement.
Free-flowing rivers support healthy ecosystems.

20/05/2026

20/05/2026

With the bit of rain and a flushing system the movement of sediment fines and the washing of stone(gravel) is evident.

The deep areas of river channels that larger aggregate is found to the shallows of inside channel sections of deposition at bars and shallow tails and meanders from pools. Smaller stone,gravel is laid down having been rattled churned and cleaned known as the transportation of materials and stone washing cycle.

The characteristics of a river to view also mimics a variety of hydrological processes providing the substrate features that encourage spawning and nursery habitat for fish and insects and healthy wildlife in general.

This is merely one area and one type of process but an integral part of sustainable habitat for our rivers.
If you look close enough you can see the sediment fines move under the surface but you need to look .

Free streams that flow promote better water quality, habitat and life.

19/05/2026

Local Authority Waters Programme

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