Spongeworks Project
Working with nature on the Aughrim River Catchment
A collaborative climate action community project
East Wicklow Rivers Trust in collaboration with our project partners Wicklow County Council, Wicklow Uplands Council and Local Authority Waters Programme are delighted to launch our Spongeworks project: Working with nature on the Aughrim River Catchment.
Developing Climate Resilience in Wicklow
The SpongeWorks project is an exciting, EU-backed initiative focusing on the beautiful upper Aughrim River catchment, and is dedicated to using natural, sustainable methods to make the area more resilient to climate change. Our key goals are to gently reduce flood risk, significantly improve the purity of the water, and better protect the precious variety of plant and animal life (biodiversity).
Even though this part of County Wicklow is mostly unspoiled, it's feeling the strain from several factors: a noticeable 7% increase in rainfall, land management practices like too much grazing and tree planting that aren't ideal for the landscape, changes to the river channels, and a scattered approach to holding water.
The heart of our approach is the innovative "Sponge" concept. This involves using Nature-based Solutions to thoughtfully transform the entire landscape—from the high uplands to the surrounding rural and urban areas—into a natural system that can soak up, hold, and slowly release water, effectively easing these pressures.
Project Objectives
Restoring our precious peatlands by carefully closing drainage ditches, allowing them to function naturally again.
Encouraging sustainable management of our natural grassland pastures.
Creating green riparian buffers (strips of natural vegetation along riverbanks).
Developing new wetlands to act as natural water filters and storage areas.
Installing river fencing to protect the banks from livestock.
Removing barriers to allow fish to migrate freely up and down the river.
Collaboration
This project is a strong partnership, bringing together vital groups like the Wicklow Uplands Council, the East Wicklow Rivers Trust, LAWPRO, and, most importantly, local landowners and farmers.
Learn more about our progress
Launch Event (27th January 2026): Join us to learn more about the project, and share ideas about how we can work with nature to restore the “sponge” capacity of our soils and manage water better across the whole catchment — from uplands to farmland to the town.
