Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) is investigating a significant fish kill in the River Rye at Maynooth, Co Kildare, with an initial estimate of 500 dead fish.
There has been no pollution source identified yet.
IFI said it will work with State partners in line with the new national protocol, released on Thursday.
The new State inter-agency plan was designed to urgently respond to significant fish kills and was published by IFI.
New national protocol
The response plan was completed following the large fish kill in the River Blackwater catchment in Cork in August 2025.
The new protocol sets out the recommended minimum requirements for each stage of the management of a fish mortality event, including preparedness, investigation and reporting activities.
The protocol will “strengthen how State organisations will co-operate, and mobilise, in each step of a significant fish kill event in the future”, IFI chief executive Eamonn Kelly commented.
"It centres on procedures to be quickly followed and on clear communication and information sharing between all the agencies involved – and with the wider public – and provides a practical and collaborative framework to ensure all relevant State authorities are better prepared to collectively respond to any future incidents," he said.
Despite an extensive investigation, the cause and source of the fish kill on the River Blackwater in August last year was not identified.
Recommendations
In September 2025, a summary report on the investigation was published by IFI on behalf of the inter-agency group set up to co-ordinate the investigation.
Following the incident, an independent review was carried out by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC).
This JRC report, published in February 2026, included a range of recommendations, such as the development of a national protocol to improve co-ordination, information sharing and communication between relevant agencies.
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