Operational Sustainability in Coast Guard Stations
Ireland
From using rainwater to clean equipment and vehicles, to installing green and living roofs on coast guard stations, the Irish Coast Guard has been rolling out a structured programme of workplace sustainability measures that harmonise with the unique natural environment of Ireland’s coastline.
Greencastle Coast Guard Station is situated in one of the most naturally beautiful – but also one of the rainiest – regions of Ireland. There, a locally developed rainwater harvesting pilot project was introduced, which redirected water that ran off the roof of the station runoff into a storage cube through a simple adapted downpipe. In this way, the whole coast guard station had a low-cost system to supply water for non-potable tasks such as vehicle and equipment cleaning, reducing reliance on treated mains water and energy intensive water processing.
The pilot system has been so successful that the Irish Coast Guard is now looking at ways to integrate it into other suitable coast guard stations around the country.
Elsewhere, Bunmahon Coast Guard Station, located within the Copper Coast UNESCO Global Geopark, has become the organisation’s first station to incorporate a living grass roof. This design provides natural insulation, reduces heating demand, and helps the building to blend sensitively into the surrounding landscape.
This approach was further developed at a new Coast Guard Station, based in Westport, in the scenic West of Ireland, which incorporates a sedum green roof. The sedum roof supports biodiversity, reduces rainwater runoff, improves thermal performance, and enhances the station’s environmental integration.
At organisational level, the Irish Coast Guard has introduced a standardised waste segregation system across all stations, ensuring consistent recycling, food waste separation, and waste management practices nationwide. The Irish Coast Guard is also reducing electricity via the transition to LED lighting and is actively assessing the integration of solar photovoltaic panels at suitable coast guard stations..