Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland
Ireland: Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture was 2.4% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland, 1980–2022
Source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of total freshwater withdrawal.
Analysis
In 2022, annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland stood at 2.4%.
The figure is down 6.4% on the previous year and down 67.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland peaked at 15.2% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 2.3%, in 2018.
That places Ireland 168th out of 180 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 43 years of available data.
Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % of total freshwater withdrawal | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 12.1% | — |
| 1981 | 12.4% | +2.0% |
| 1982 | 12.6% | +1.9% |
| 1983 | 12.9% | +1.8% |
| 1984 | 13.1% | +1.8% |
| 1985 | 13.3% | +1.7% |
| 1986 | 13.5% | +1.7% |
| 1987 | 13.8% | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 14.0% | +1.6% |
| 1989 | 14.2% | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 14.4% | +1.5% |
| 1991 | 14.6% | +1.5% |
| 1992 | 14.8% | +1.4% |
| 1993 | 15.0% | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 15.2% | +1.3% |
| 1995 | 15.1% | -0.9% |
| 1996 | 14.9% | -1.0% |
| 1997 | 14.8% | -1.1% |
| 1998 | 14.6% | -1.1% |
| 1999 | 14.4% | -1.2% |
| 2000 | 14.2% | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 14.1% | -1.4% |
| 2002 | 13.8% | -1.5% |
| 2003 | 12.8% | -7.6% |
| 2004 | 11.8% | -7.7% |
| 2005 | 14.1% | +19.5% |
| 2006 | 11.4% | -19.0% |
| 2007 | 13.8% | +20.6% |
| 2008 | 10.9% | -20.8% |
| 2009 | 11.7% | +7.2% |
| 2010 | 9.0% | -23.5% |
| 2011 | 8.1% | -9.1% |
| 2012 | 7.4% | -9.6% |
| 2013 | 6.4% | -13.2% |
| 2014 | 5.5% | -13.8% |
| 2015 | 4.9% | -10.5% |
| 2016 | 4.2% | -14.7% |
| 2017 | 3.1% | -26.9% |
| 2018 | 2.3% | -26.7% |
| 2019 | 2.3% | +2.1% |
| 2020 | 2.5% | +9.9% |
| 2021 | 2.5% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 2.4% | -6.4% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 2.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 28.8%, 8% of the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 2.4% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 16.8%, 14% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | -26.9% | 4.2% | 3.1% |
| 2018 | -26.7% | 3.1% | 2.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 13.2% | 12.1% | 14.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.8% | 14.4% | 15.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.9% | 10.9% | 14.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.3% | 2.3% | 9.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 165 Puerto Rico 3.5% compare
- 166 Netherlands 3.2% compare
- 167 Czechia 3.0% compare
- 169 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1.3% compare
- 170 Luxembourg 1.0% compare
- 171 Belgium 0.9% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Ireland
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 22.64 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0106 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,391 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.9559 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3541 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 1.1% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.3% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland?
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Ireland was 2.4% in 2022, according to AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 15.2% in 1994.
- What is the lowest annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.3% in 2018.
- How does Ireland rank for annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture?
- Ireland ranks 168th out of 180 countries with data for 2022.
- Is annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 67.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture (% of total freshwater withdrawal). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 43 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual freshwater withdrawals refer to total water withdrawals, not counting evaporation losses from storage basins. Withdrawals also include water from desalination plants in countries where they are a significant source. Withdrawals can exceed 100 percent of total renewable resources where extraction from nonrenewable aquifers or desalination plants is considerable or where there is significant water reuse. Withdrawals for agriculture are total withdrawals for irrigation and livestock production. Data are for the most recent year available for 1987-2002.