I should like to join in the many tributes paid to the ESB in this House and outside it. Since the foundation of this State they have rendered a national service and discharged their duties in a manner which has won the admiration and affection of all our people. They have made a wonderful contribution. Having regard to their record of work, service and dedication, any legislation introduced to deal with the ESB should meet with the approval of every Member of the House and the entire population.
It is right to salute the founders of the ESB and their technicians, advisers and engineers of the highest standard who have won respect and admiration far away from Irealnd where the ESB have been carrying out extremely constructive work at international level. Due to the vision of those early pioneers in the ESB a tremendous amount has been accomplished and achieved within a very short time, because 50 years in the lifetime of any country is a very short period. For that reason I salute the ESB past and present and express the hope that all their future efforts will be crowned with success. Their great contribution to this country and in recent years on the continent of Africa and elsewhere is remarkable.
That brings me to a very important point. Since we became Europeans— I should not say that because we were always part of Europe geographically— in recent years all our minds are directed towards the activities of Europe as members of the Community. Many in public life seem to be directing their attention and energies far from the shores of this country, at the same time forgetting that we are Irish, that we have our own country to look after, our own nation to develop and likewise our own energy resources to develop. We Irish are an extremely generous people when it comes to helping others, when it comes to speaking and assisting in the propaganda of other countries abroad, but we seldom display the same courage in the development of our own resources and our own country. Every Irishman, no matter what kind of European label may be tagged on to his coat, has an interest and duty to look after the development of his own country. The former Minister for Energy will forgive me for making this comment, but it appears that much energy had been devoted towards our European co-operation and advancement and development of the Community as a whole while at the same time forgetting our own national interests.
Some time in the future we will be brought to a realisation that our first duty is to our own country. It is a fact that we must import oils. I gather that in recent times the energies of the ESB have been devoted to cutting down on imports. Governments present and future in planning for the next decade and into the 2000s, will, I presume, likewise devote their energies towards cutting down as far as possible on imports. We should be able to cut down very drastically on imports of oil without our people suffering inconvenience. It is to be hoped that we will have our own energy for heating and light and that we will examine new methods of producing our own fuel for transport. If the present Minister is not already aware — I am sure that the former Minister is — I can tell him that at present one or two nations in this world do not have to import any petroleum or oil whatever because they are able to manufacture their own oil from sugar cane. If that is possible in these countries — two of them in particular — has it been examined at any stage here?
There is a close relationship between sugar cane and the sugar beet that we process in this country. Has any investigation been carried out into the suitability of sugar beet for the manufacture of petroleum? Have the ESB, with their high standard and supreme quality of engineers and technicians, given any consideration to that aspect? It may be that they have and found it to be unsuitable or uneconomical. I do not know. But I cannot recall reading any report or comment regarding the association of sugar beet with sugar cane from which in at least two countries a supply of petroleum of a very superior quality can be manufactured. These countries have no transport problems because this type of fuel is cheap for them. It may take, say, four tons of sugar beet to produce about one ton weight of the petroleum and perhaps it would be completely and entirely uneconomical for us. Nevertheless, it is worthy of some investigation.
The cost of oil will never again be as low as it used to be. If we are anxious to cut down on our imports of oil we have to depend on the ESB to present us with a new situation in the provision of energy for heating and cooking for the normal family, for transport and particularly for industry. In recent years since our farms have been modernised the farmers have been depending completely on electricity for milking machines and agricultural equipment.
The time has come for a complete review of the whole structure of the ESB. We are now presented with supplies of natural gas. When the pipeline from Cork to Dublin and, it is to be hoped, from Dublin to Belfast, is completed the contribution of natural gas will have changed the situation rather drastically for the ESB. For that reason the ESB will be embarking on a new period of history. Before I leave the question of natural gas, which we all welcome, I pay tribute to everybody who has been connected with it. I hope and trust that when the tenders have been examined and work is put in hands the responsible authorities will provide a map for the public showing the course of the pipeline, the towns and cities, as the case may be, which will be supplied with gas from the main line. If this is done, there can be planning not alone at regional level, but also at county level and local authorities will be able to help and advise, particularly the district offices of the ESB. With a measure of co-operation we should be able to cut down drastically on our imports of oil.
The ESB have been working closely and satisfactorily with Bord na Móna. Everybody — not just in Parliament — should be four square behind the ESB in their efforts to utilise our natural resources. How often must we plead in the House for the full development of our own natural resources? The good Lord may not have blessed us with an extraordinarily exciting climate. Nevertheless, our weather is never too hot or too cold, too dry or too wet. For that reason, we are in a great position to develop the natural resources we have, namely, our fuel which is buried in the bottom of the earth. While the rest of Europe and, perhaps, the rest of the world, with the exception of the Third World countries, has developed all its natural resources, we, with native Government since the early twenties, are approaching the year 2000 with the greatest part of our mineral deposits undeveloped. What has been done in the last 50 years is merely scratching the surface. I wonder what the future holds in relation to the development of our mineral resources. I am anxious to know what contribution will come from European funds in order to develop our coal, bogs, light and heat. The less we depend on the outsider, the better. We have to stand on our own two feet in relation to this matter. The ESB and Bord na Móna have made a wonderful contribution. Together they have changed the face of my constituency. If I were asked to paint a picture of the constituency of Laois-Offaly from the late thirties and forties and compare it with today, it is doubtful if any of the present generation would believe the transformation which has taken place as a result of the activities of the ESB and Bord na Móna and the co-operation between them.
We have the ESB power station at Shannonbridge which has been extended and is one of the greatest developments which has taken place. I wonder what has happened to the report of the late sixties in which the area of the Blackwater bog was recommended as one of the most suitable sites, on a par with Mount Lucas and Littleton in County Tipperary, for the construction of a briquette factory. For some reason or other, whether it is the present development of the power station at Shannonbridge or whether it was the policy of Bord na Móna and the ESB to spread their custom around in order to provide employment and to satisfy local demand, there was never any mention since of the construction of the briquette factory convenient to the Blackwater bog in the Shannonbridge area. Could there be a more important area for development? The Brosna River has been drained in recent years, where there is the greatest vein of turf and fuel in Ireland. The ESB have one of the most satisfactory power stations standing on lands on which I often spent pleasant evenings, before there was ever any question of a power station being constructed in these areas. The amount of employment which has been given by the ESB in the Shannonbridge area has enriched probably every home in the locality. The activities of Bord na Móna have, likewise, enriched community living in the area. It meant more houses, more people, more schools, more children, more playgrounds, a greater demand in the local shops, a demand for more shops and consumption of more food. It has completely changed the face of the Shannonbridge area from the time when I first visited it in the late forties.
Nobody could compare Rhode, County Offaly, today with what it was like in the forties. It can now be described as a town with vast new housing estates, lively activity and a growing parish, simply because the ESB constructed a fine new generating station in the locality. This was in the midst of one of the greatest bogs in County Offaly. These bogs have been used for feeding the ESB generating station. The amount of employment which has been given in that locality has changed the whole face of that area. There is a briquette factory at Mount Lucas in the heart of County Offaly. Before it was constructed there was no activity to be seen. From time to time the gentry might be seen walking the bogs among the heather for the purpose of shooting and raising the necessary wildlife in order to enliven their sporting activities. Today there is a vast difference and a great change because one of Ireland's great turf producing briquette factories is there, giving employment both permanent and temporary. For that reason, the whole face of that locality has been changed completely as a result of the activities for the development of what was down in the ground and what was considered, many years ago, to be bogland. The bogs in those areas have been turned into gold for many families. It is pitiful to see hundreds and thousands of acres of undeveloped, virgin bog which neither the ESB nor Bord na Móna have worked on. What has been done in one area can be done in other areas. There is a great future programme for both Bord na Móna and the ESB to undertake jointly plans which may result in the cutting down of our oil imports and the obtaining of all our requirements from native turf.
The town of Portarlington, once a town with few industries, was greatly improved by the arrival of the ESB and the construction of the great power station there, with the ensuing increase in employment and business for the community. Perhaps the most dramatic change in my constituency brought about by the ESB is the new twin tower ESB station at Lumcloon, near Cloughan, County Offaly. I often stood on the very land which that power station now occupies. During the ESB chairmanship of the late Mr. Browne, I can recall making representations to a number of local farmers, one of whom is still alive at 95 years of age, in an attempt to encourage them to give their land to the ESB for the construction of this power station. There was great hesitation then, because people did not realise the importance of these great electricity generating stations. Four farmers eventually agreed to give their land and when the ESB completed the contract at the Lumcloon station, the town of Ferbane and the village of Cloughan were changed as a result of the employment given in what was the heart of the boglands. Because of the development of Boora Bog, it was eventually necessary to build a new Catholic Church in Boora to accommodate the local people. Business was vastly increased. The young people there had a hope which their fathers and grandfathers never had and a pay packet coming in each week which was far removed from the £2 or £2.10s for the sale of their grandfather's cow at the fair of Banagher or Birr. These developments should continue at an even speedier rate because we have all the resources in other undeveloped parts of my constituency and of the country in general.
I pay tribute to Bord na Móna and the ESB for the changing face of the counties of Offaly and Laois, of Coolnamona town below Portlaoise, where an individual was seldom seen but which is now a hive of activity because of its peat moss industry. In addition, in recent years, drainage of the River Brosna in Offaly has helped the drainage of the bogs. There is little use in draining bogs if there is nowhere for the water to go. Here again, the Board of Works made their contribution. With Rhode and Portarlington, Shannonbridge and Mount Lucas, with the new briquette factory at Derrinlough, near Birr there has been a change in the heart of the country where nothing could be seen but a desolate and lonely expanse of bogland and heather. Derrinlough can now be described as a hive of industry, producing briquettes for the home market and for export. I am extremely proud to represent the constituency of Laois-Offaly, and that I have lived to see such extraordinary development, unbelievable when compared with the lack of development in the early forties.
I want to emphasise something which has been covered already by the speech of the former Tánaiste. I refer to the necessity for the construction of coal-burning stations. If native coal is to be used alongside turf, it is vital that we mine our coal and anthracite deposits. There are coal mines in my constituency which have coal for at least 200 years, in many parts of the Rossmore Collieries, at Woodhill, Doonane and Mayo in County Laois, bordering Carlow and Kilkenny but within County Laois.
According to a survey undertaken many years ago by the British Government, some of the most productive coal areas are in County Laois. The ESB and other Government agencies may think it uneconomic to take part in the development of that coal-mining industry. May I place this project before the Department of Energy and, in particular, before the present new, young and energetic Minister? Coal-mining has long been a tradition in the Rossmore area of County Laois. Old miners still tell of their efforts down under the ground, mining coal and anthracite in the past. Their fathers were coalminers and their sons and grandsons still are. However, there seems to be a very limited amount of this work available now.
I want to pay special tribute to the assistance given by the former Minister for Energy, Deputy Colley, during his period of office. He may recall the deputations of which I was a member. He was extremely helpful in the re-opening of the coal mines in the Rossmore area, which gave a new ray of hope to the young miners of the area. It takes a great man to be a coalminer. It is skilled, traditional work which every man could not undertake. The young and old miners, some of whom visited Deputy Colley when he was Minister, love the mines and can talk of nothing but the shafts, the flooding of the mines, the ways of raising coal. Is it not regrettable that, whilst we see the development of coalmines in parts of Luxembourg, Germany and Britain, the people of Luxembourg, Germany or Britain do not seem to have cared about the development of our coalmining industry? If we do not look, we will not get. In the period which lies ahead, if we are eventually to have a drastic cutback in our oil imports, we must have energy.
We must do something about the energy situation, irrespective of cost. What is cost when it comes to developing our natural resources and taking out of the earth what God gave us for man's use and benefit? It must be remembered that national housekeeping is only bookkeeping and the same can be said for banking. The custodians of our national housekeeping do not appear to put sufficient emphasis on the development of our energy resources simply because we do not have the necessary financial wherewithal.
We have a duty to our people and to future generations to develop our bogs and to mine the anthracite and coal, which are in abundance in the Leinster coalfields. When the Castlecomer mines closed I did not believe that was the end of the coal in that area. The old miners said there was coal there and I believe them. Recent surveys tell of anthracite and coal in these areas. If only we had a Coal Board with the enthusiasm and dedication that exists in the ESB. We do not have a Coal Board. Neither Bord na Móna nor the ESB are responsible. I suppose it is not possible to get private enterprise to invest in coal development because of the cost of opening shafts, providing security and the cost of insurance and protection of the workers, but the State has a responsibility in this area.
We have a young enthusiastic Government anxious to undertake new tasks and new responsibilities. This is an area in which they could become involved. They may say that our fuel and mineral resources have not been developed in the past but they should not be too critical because some efforts were made in that direction. With new life, energy, faith and hope, there is no reason why they cannot develop our bogs and mines and so make a contribution to the national economy.
We need the coal and anthracite which lie under the ground. There are many virgin bogs all over this country. Bord na Móna say that because of financial restrictions they cannot do what is necessary but must work to a plan. The more money we invest, the more employment we create. The greater the contribution of coal and turf to our economy, the fewer balance of payments problems we will have.
I do not know what plans the ESB and Bord na Móna may have for the development of our fuel resources. When the Bord na Móna Estimate is discussed in this House I hope Deputies on all sides will ensure that serious efforts are made to develop every bog in this country. These bogs could provide fuel which could be converted into briquettes and, if necessary, transported to our ESB stations. It is wrong to have such wealth under the soil while there are so many people, 140,000, unemployed. How many more people in rural Ireland could Bord na Móna employ?
I want to pay a tribute to the scheme which will provide grants to private bog owners to develop their bogs. Some of these owners will avail of these grants, and I would like to see Bord na Móna qualifying for the extra money. They have the machinery, the skill and the qualified personnel to help private bog owners. Their staff could work as agents for the development of private bogs because this work must be undertaken on a large scale and using the most modern machinery. This machinery must be used by experts and such skills can only be provided by Bord na Móna. I hope another look will be taken at this area.
Before the change of Government I intended meeting the then Minister, Deputy Colley, about this matter because of discussions I had with Bord na Móna workers in my constituency and with a number of private bog owners. The owners told me they could not undertake the necessary preliminary work because of the lack of skilled workers and up-to-date machinery and that the grant would not enable them to engage the services of such skilled workers and hire the necessary machinery, which is not available to the general public. This means we must get Bord na Móna involved in this scheme. They have seasonal and permanent workers who could be engaged developing private bogs and if this were done the temporary workers would be permanently employed.
There is endless work to be undertaken in rural Ireland. Any Government who do not undertake these tasks will have to account to the public every three or four years. The development of the midlands and every part of Ireland depends on political will. If the political will exists, anything can be done. A country with 140,000 unemployed, with undeveloped bogs and untapped mines, with energy problems and with a home market which can use any energy sources produced, should be able to utilise these resources and so solve its problems.
We have thousands of acres of cut-away bog suitable for planting a certain type of tree needed by the ESB. I realise this pilot scheme is in its infancy but steps can be taken to prepare the cut-away bogs for these plantations. With the co-operation of the Department of Fisheries and Forestry, Bord na Móna and the ESB there is an unlimited amount of productive work available.
I would ask the Minister to bear in mind the matter of industrial relations within the ESB. We have now reached a stage where people cannot do without an electricity supply and in the event of an unofficial strike the whole country can be brought to a standstill within 24 hours. The farming industry can be paralysed; cows cannot be milked and there is a high death rate in hatcheries. Every form of agricultural activity now depends on electricity. Heat is also necessary in the home, especially for the sick and the elderly, and it is tragic that they are sometimes deprived of it. The wheels of industry grind to a halt when the current is cut off. Steps must be taken by the ESB to see that this never again takes place. There is too much to lose.
There must be an improvement in relations between workers and management. Poor industrial relations are caused by lack of understanding and commonsense and by a failure to give and take. One side cannot settle an argument or a dispute without the co-operation of the other. The people will never again tolerate directors sitting in boardrooms taking all and giving nothing. They have a duty to protect their employees and to look after their interests. The disputes which happened in the past must be looked on as history and avoided in the future.
Deputy Colley referred to nuclear power and there has been much talk in recent years in connection with the ESB's proposal to embark, with Government approval, on the construction of a nuclear power station. Every Member knows my views on that subject — I am strongly anti-nuclear. Deputy Colley did not wish to give a decision on the matter without going through the rounds of a public inquiry at which different interests would express their views and following which a report would be submitted to the Government for a decision. Why waste all that time and personal energy? Nuclear energy is dangerous. It takes five years to construct a nuclear power station and it has a life of only 20 years. Such a project would be uneconomic and would not make sense. An accident could occur, such as that at Harrisburg, which would involve loss of life, grave danger to the health of many thousands of people and the destruction of bird and fish life. Who would take the decision to go ahead with such a project in the light of all the possible dangers? It should also be remembered that the number of jobs involved would be very limited.
The Government of Austria decided, following the building of a nuclear plant, to hold a referendum on the subject. The people voted against nuclear power and the plant cannot now function because of their rejection. We will not put the people to the trouble of having a referendum on whether or not to have nuclear energy. It will be rejected out of hand if I have anything to say about it. A nuclear station here would put the environment at risk, the very air we breathe and the water we drink. The whole environment could be destroyed by the nuclear hand of death if somebody forgot to pull a switch or pulled the wrong switch. Let us not take the risks of Harrisburg or the risks that have been taken in other areas where nuclear stations have been erected. I have read every document issued by the Council of Europe on nuclear plants and I am convinced that the quality of life in the locality of such a plant is at grave risk. I appeal to the Government to reject out of hand the erection of a nuclear station and not waste any more time with inquiries. I am sure the House will agree that we are living in an age in which we must consider a degree of economy. I recommend that the Department of Energy exercise economy by not wasting time or money on inquiries about nuclear stations.
If he can do so, will the Minister say what is the position in relation to the study being undertaken in connection with the Leinster coalfields, apart from the coalfields in my constituency that I have already mentioned? Is this a study from which there will be a 500-page highly technical report above the heads and intelligence of the ordinary man to digest or will it be a report which will facilitate the immediate development of the Leinster coalfields? Will we have to await this report for another three, five or seven years and when it is received will it be left on the shelves of Government offices to be taken down and read for the convenience of a variety of politicians? The Department of Energy should take the necessary steps to ensure that the production of the report is not delayed and that decisions are taken to implement whatever part of the report is practical. This is vitally important.
The ESB are charged with the responsibility of providing heat and light to homes. I have pitied and sympathised with young married couples who, having erected and furnished their homes, then find that in rural Ireland vast sums, ranging from £500 to £1,500, have to be paid to the ESB for connecting the current to the house. This has meant considerable hardship in some cases. People who are being encouraged to set up homes and rear families in rural Ireland should be given more consideration and they should get lighting and heating without first having to pay for the poles and the wire. The Department of Energy should introduce a scheme through the ESB so that people setting up house need not pay for the wire and poles but would only have to pay for the supply when they started using it. If the ESB are to give a service it behoves the State to ensure that people only pay for the lighting and the heating. There should be an additional subsidy to the ESB to eliminate this penal cost so that people can have electricity supplies connected to their homes without additional penury. Many young people have to borrow money for this or else spend a long winter in cold and darkness. Steps should be taken to eliminate such hardship.
I salute the ESB on their contributions to date. They have a new future ahead of them. I admire the quality of our engineers at home and abroad. Irish engineers from Bord na Móna and the ESB go abroad and are looked upon as the pride of Ireland.
I hope future years will prove fruitful for the ESB in relation to the development of our bogs and alternative power requirements. I do not know if the Minister referred to how far they have gone in researching power from tidal waves, or what are those prospects. For example, has there been a full examination carried out of what additional power might become available through harnessing of additional rivers apart from Poulaphouca and Ardnacrusha on the Shannon? There must be other sources of energy capable of development by the ESB to contribute to our energy requirements.
I should like to pay tribute also to the industrial concerns and trade unions who co-operated in the appeal for the saving of electricity. The former Minister, Deputy Colley, toured the country in a campaign to advise people not to waste electricity. I do not know whether other Deputies have referred to that campaign but I think it was effective and has borne results in many industries and private homes in which a saving on electricity has been effected.
I should like to see the day — though it is extremely doubtful that I shall live to see it — when we can stand on our own feet without the necessity to import oil, the day when we can meet our energy requirements through the fullest possible development of our peatland and our coal and anthracite resources which are there in abundance. Do not mind the reports that contend it is not of high quality; one does not know its quality until it is mined, and a market can be obtained for it no matter what its quality. In the meantime it would create worth-while employment giving young people an assurance that they could obtain a day's work in the vicinity of a coalmine or an undeveloped bog. Before long I hope we will see an effort being made by the ESB, in conjunction with Bord na Móna — a survey having been carried out — to develop all our bogland. Such would constitute an enormous contribution by the ESB towards this nation, to Irish men and women, giving us the power necessary for our factories, industries, farms, homes and so on. However, a lot more awaits doing. This is where the Government can give a courageous lead by entering into consultation with the management of these boards, saying, "Present us with the plans, we will give you the money, get on with the work". I would also hope that our Ministers travelling abroad, particularly those who are Members of the European Parliament, will stress continuously the need for more money from our wealthy partners because we are the poor relation and must be looked after. If wealthy European countries are prepared to share in the transition of the face of this country no better way can they do so than through the development of our bogs and coal resources thereby cutting down on our oil imports in accordance with the policy laid down by the Department of Energy.