Dublin Port & Poolbeg - Dublin, Ireland

This live camera from Dublin Port looks east along the main shipping channel towards Dublin Bay, with a fully laden container vessel berthed on the left and the iconic twin Poolbeg Chimneys dominating the skyline on the right bank. Dublin Port is the largest port in Ireland, handling approximately €165 billion in trade annually and processing 1.6 million ferry passengers per year on routes primarily to Holyhead, Liverpool, and Cherbourg. The port operates across 261 hectares of land and water on the north bank of the River Liffey and has functioned as Dublin's primary trading gateway since the 18th century.

The two red and white striped chimneys visible on the right bank belong to the Poolbeg Generating Station in the Ringsend district, standing 207 metres tall and visible from across much of greater Dublin. The station began generating electricity in 1971 and was decommissioned in 2010, but the chimneys were granted protected structure status in 2014 following a major public campaign to preserve them as landmarks.

The shipping channel in this feed is sheltered between the Great South Wall on the south side and the North Bull Wall to the north, two of the longest sea walls in Ireland, with the Great South Wall stretching 4.4 kilometres into Dublin Bay and terminating at the red Poolbeg Lighthouse, visible as a small structure at the end of the southern breakwater in the distance.

Dublin Bay, into which this channel opens, was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2015, covering 300 square kilometres of coastline, mudflats, and open water that supports internationally important populations of wintering wading birds and seals. The port's live stream is delayed by 10 minutes for security reasons and can be wound back up to 12 hours, making it a useful reference for tracking vessel movements through one of north-west Europe's busiest short-sea shipping routes. Ireland's island economy means over 90% of its trade by volume moves through its ports, with Dublin Port alone handling 47% of all Irish unitised freight.

Did You Know? The Poolbeg Chimneys at 207 metres tall were granted protected structure status in 2014 after a public campaign, making them among the few industrial structures in Ireland with the same legal protections as historic buildings.

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