Annual freshwater withdrawals in Ireland
Ireland: Annual freshwater withdrawals was 1.67 billion billion cubic meters in 2022. ▲ Rising
Annual freshwater withdrawals in Ireland, 1980–2022
Source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in billion cubic meters.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 1.67 billion billion cubic meters for annual freshwater withdrawals in 2022. That is the highest value across all 43 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.8% on the previous year and up 70.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual freshwater withdrawals in Ireland peaked at 1.67 billion billion cubic meters in 2022 and was at its lowest, 730.00 million billion cubic meters, in 2007.
That places Ireland 93rd out of 181 regions with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 43 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.10 billion billion cubic meters | 1.07 billion billion cubic meters | 1.14 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.12 billion billion cubic meters | 1.00 billion billion cubic meters | 1.18 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 830.31 million billion cubic meters | 730.00 million billion cubic meters | 970.36 million billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.17 billion billion cubic meters | 831.44 million billion cubic meters | 1.54 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.60 billion billion cubic meters | 1.54 billion billion cubic meters | 1.67 billion billion cubic meters | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 90 El Salvador 1.94 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 91 Lebanon 1.81 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 92 Switzerland 1.70 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 94 Oman 1.63 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 95 Honduras 1.61 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 96 Zambia 1.57 billion billion cubic meters compare
More environment data for Ireland
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 59.68 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 11.06 t CO2e/capita (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 15.58 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 0.0879 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 1.23 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.0115 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 18.11 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.0209 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.0087 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 1.16 Mt CO2e (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual freshwater withdrawals in Ireland?
- Annual freshwater withdrawals in Ireland was 1.67 billion billion cubic meters in 2022, according to AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual freshwater withdrawals recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 1.67 billion billion cubic meters in 2022.
- What is the lowest annual freshwater withdrawals recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 730.00 million billion cubic meters in 2007.
- How does Ireland rank for annual freshwater withdrawals?
- Ireland ranks 93rd out of 181 regions with data for 2022.
- Is annual freshwater withdrawals rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 70.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual freshwater withdrawals. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 43 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual freshwater withdrawals refer to total water withdrawals, not counting evaporation losses from storage basins, measured in cubic metres (m³) per year. Total water withdrawals are the sum of withdrawals for agriculture, industry and municipal (domestic uses). Withdrawals also include water from desalination plants in countries where they are a significant source.