Videos show work of Cork County Council’s science staff

A series of videos to mark Science Week 2021 have been made available on Cork County Council’s YouTube channel revealing the work of their scientists and technical staff.

Scientists from the council’s laboratory in Inniscarra will also be hosting Zoom calls with primary schools to discuss the importance of science in day-to-day life and how scientific work benefits communities in Cork County.

Ahead of Science Week, Gillian Coughlan, Cork county mayor, visited staff at the facility in Inniscarra. 

“The high-tech equipment and highly trained technical and scientific staff of Cork County Council’s laboratory services are a huge resource for the county, ensuring our rivers, bathing waters, and drinking waters are safe,” Ms Coughlan said. 

“It’s great to see the talent of staff also going towards inspiring the next generation of scientists during Science Week.”

During Science Week, Cork County Council scientists will be engaging online with primary school children from all over the county, from North Cork to Bere Island, with videos such as ‘Why the Sky Looks Blue’ and ‘How We Know the Earth is Round’. Several videos explaining the important work that staff undertake in the laboratory will also be uploaded on YouTube.

Cork County Council’s Water Laboratory Service is the longest continuously accredited local-authority laboratory in the country, first accredited to ISO17025 standard in 1991. It is staffed by technicians, chemists, and environmental scientists.

Cork County Council’s laboratory staff analyse thousands of drinking-water samples every year at Group Water Schemes, schools, community centres, and small businesses all over the county.

The staff sample effluent discharges, as well as hundreds of river-monitoring points, throughout the year. They also take samples at beaches during the bathing-water season to ensure good water quality, with Cork beaches awarded more Blue and Green flags combined than any other county in 2021.

Videos will be released daily on Cork County Council’s Youtube Channel throughout Science Week, from November 7-14.