Waterways Ireland has launched its 10 year plan for the redevelopment and restoration of the country's inland waters.
It will see an initial €200m invested over the next three years, with further funding required for later stages of the programme.
Its plans include the continue redevelopment of the Ulster Canal, which will include the creation of a new canal and marina in Clones, Co Monaghan.
"It's a project that's been spoken about for a long time," said John McDonagh, CEO of Waterways Ireland. "There's been planning and no money, there's been money and no planning.
"The project is now happening on the ground, phase 2 will complete in March of next year, and then the overall project, the 13km stretch, will complete in 2028."
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Waterways Ireland is also seeking to redevelop Dublin's Docklands and the city's canals, with an aim of bringing them to a standard "seen in other European capitals."
This will involve a range of different projects, which will all build towards making the city's waterways more user-friendly and inter-connected.
"We're planning to work on the metro section to take [the Royal Canal greenway] all the way into Spencer Dock, similarly with the Grand Canal to take it to the Grand Canal Basin," he said.
"That would make it easier for people to commute into the city."
There is also a cultural and tourism element to its plans in Dublin.
"We're working presently on what we call the sea lock gates in the elder basin, these are heritage structures from 1796," he said. "When we open them up we'll be able to bring in tall ships into the elder basin, which will create a tourism opportunity.
"We're looking to improve the public realm of the canals; looking to make things easier like tree management programmes, tow-paths with proper paths, seats to sit on and relax in. Some of the simple things as well."
Mr McDonagh said the plan aims to unlock the value of the country's waterways, greenways and blueways. He said this included both its environmental and economic potential.
However, where it is a choice between the environment and the economy, its investment will side with the environment.
"This is about value - and value is economic, value is social, value is environmental wellbeing," he said. "All the work we do is sustainable development - we're very conscious of protocols and processes.
"There are sometimes conflicts and, from a plan perspective, what wins out is sustainability."
One of the keys to Waterways Ireland's plan are changes to the country's canal bylaws, proposals for which were first announced earlier this year.
However concerns have been raised about their impact - particularly for boat owners and businesses operating in the Shannon area.
Mr McDonagh defended its plan - including a proposed €200 annual registration charge - but said it was open to making changes to better accommodate water users.
"The particular issue around the permit reflects the fact that the by-laws are so out-dated, they're over 35 years old," he said. "We are open to consideration of all of the feedback we've had in submission, and as a result of that we've planned to have phase 2 of a consultation, which will reopen in the middle of January.
"At that point we'll come back with modifications."
