Barry Cowen
Question:1. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the energy summit he convened at Government Buildings in the summer. [36290/23]
View answerTuesday, 3 October 2023
Questions (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
Christopher O'Sullivan
Question:2. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach for an overview of the Quarter 2 Progress Report of the 2023 Climate Action Plan. [37575/23]
View answer
Paul Murphy
Question:3. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate will next meet. [41221/23]
View answer
Mattie McGrath
Question:4. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will next meet. [42249/23]
View answer
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:5. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will next meet. [42341/23]
View answer
Mick Barry
Question:6. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on environment and climate change will next meet. [42484/23]
View answerOral answers (6 contributions)
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 6, inclusive, together. On 6 July, along with the Tánaiste and the Minister the Environment, Climate and Communications, I convened an energy summit at Government Buildings. The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment also took part, along with speakers from the International Energy Agency and the Danish Ministry of Climate, Energy and Utilities.
The summit brought together representatives of those in the public, private and voluntary sectors whose combined efforts are, and will continue to be, crucial to the decarbonisation of Ireland’s energy systems. The event allowed participants to reflect on national, EU and international developments and to discuss how best to position Ireland to reap the economic, social and environmental benefits of Ireland’s move away from fossil fuels and towards indigenous, renewable energy sources. Those attending were able to share their perspectives and ideas on how the transition can be most effectively undertaken. It was a valuable occasion for me and my colleagues in Government to hear first-hand from those most engaged in this transformation and to discuss the challenges and opportunities that lie before us.
The event reaffirmed this Government’s commitment to moving quickly towards wind and solar electricity generation and away from fossil fuels, reinforcing our electricity network to accommodate this shift and providing the enhanced storage and interconnection capacity that will be required. We also discussed the industrial and development potential that will arise from Ireland tapping into the enormous renewable energy resource that we have on land and at sea. The possibility of Ireland producing far more electricity than we consume is very real. This Government is working to ensure that we make the most of this natural advantage that we enjoy. Government Departments and State bodies, whose officials were present, will use the perspectives and ideas gathered from this event in the further development of policy proposals for Government and in their service delivery arrangements.
The Climate Action Plan 2023 sets out a series of actions in response to the climate crisis, to meet the emissions reduction targets that we have set and to prepare for the impacts of climate change that pose a threat to our people and economy. The Department of the Taoiseach prepares quarterly progress reports on the implementation of actions committed to under the climate action plan. The reports provide a detailed breakdown of completed and delayed actions each quarter. Once approved by Government, these reports are published on the Department’s website. The quarterly reports focus on progress within each of the six high-impact sectors identified: agriculture, land use, transport, energy, buildings and industry. They also provide context for the actions completed and delayed, including sectoral emissions targets and trends, key performance indicators and further detail on actions of particular significance.
The latest progress report for the climate action plan was published on 25 July and refers to actions that were due to be completed in quarter 2 of this year. The completion rate in that progress report stood at 63%, with 32 of 51 actions on schedule. Combining delivery from quarters 1 and 2 gives an overall implementation rate of 72% for the first half of the year. High impact measures completed in quarter 2 include the opening of the targeted agriculture modernisation scheme 3 to fund low emissions slurry spreading, regulations to help a growth in the use of biofuels, delivery of the offshore renewable electricity support scheme auction, ensuring homeowners undertaking energy upgrades have the option of paying the cost net of the SEAI grant and a publication of a roadmap for green hydrogen. All delayed measures from the quarter 2 report have been carried forward for reporting and implementation in quarter 3. The third progress report on the Climate Action Plan 2023 is being compiled and will be published in the coming weeks.
The Cabinet committee on the environment and climate change last met on 10 July 2023, and the next meeting is due to take place on 19 October 2023.
The River Poddle was the main source of Dublin's drinking water for more than 500 years but if one was to drink it now one would be in danger of going to hospital. It is polluted so often that it is a danger to wildlife and children in the parks that it runs through in Tallaght, Crumlin and Kimmage. For years local people, environmental activists and the Save the Poddle campaign have reported the pollution to South Dublin County Council and to the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, but to no avail. The most recent incident was last Friday when an oily substance that looked like bleach turned the river white in Tymon Park and in Bancroft Park. The council knows that the pollution is coming from nearby industrial estates like the Cookstown Industrial Estate but continues to allow business owners to pollute the river with total impunity. When will action be taken? When will business owners be prosecuted for polluting our waterways for the sake of profit? Is the Taoiseach happy for us to end up with more Lough Neaghs in this jurisdiction?
Climate action is often very abstract for people because it does not appear to make any difference to their lives. One area where it can make a real and tangible difference, particularly given the energy price hikes and the cost of living, is in the area of retrofitting of people's homes. If we insulate and retrofit people's homes we can save their energy bills to a very large extent. What is increasingly clear, however, when we look at the Government's plan to retrofit 500,000 homes is that in the first three years of the plan the Government has only managed to retrofit 16% of the target. The number reaching the BER 2 standard of retrofit - a high level of retrofit - is far less than that.
The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland conducted a survey asking people about where they see the problems with retrofit and 44% of people said the grants were insufficient and the cost was too excessive. That is the big problem: the least well off are the most in need of their homes needing to be retrofitted to reduce the cost of living and the cost of energy but they are least able to actually afford to retrofit their homes because the cost is too much and the grants are too small.
A large quantity of toxic algae has bloomed on Lough Neagh, which is the largest freshwater lake on this island. This is the result of pollution from sewage and from farm run-off combining with hot temperatures. It has been estimated that 200,000 tonnes of sewage is discharged into the lake every year. The poisonous algae has killed pets and killed wildlife. Dead fish are washing ashore due to depleted oxygen in the water, threatening the livelihoods of local fishers. The banks of the lough are owned by none less than the Earl of Shaftesbury who has extracted large quantities of sand from the bed of the lough over decades. He has not done this himself but has paid other people to do it.
This ruthless profiteering has devastated local wildlife and worsened the algae crisis. Will the Taoiseach agree that our environment must come before private profit? Will he join with me in calling for the nationalisation of the lough without compensation and wish the people power campaign on this issue all the very best?
I got reasonable news in the form of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland's, SEAI's, feasibility study on shallow geothermal heat sources to replace the gas communal system that is operational in Carlinn Hall, Dundalk. Obviously, this would be applicable in many of these types of scenarios. I have stated previously that these are almost the Achilles heel in relation to district heating, which we need to see in play. There will be legislative changes needed to make sure that we do not continue with these gas-fed systems but I think we would all say that geothermal is one of the ways to go. There will be short, medium and long-term recommendations. As I say, the sooner it happens in October, the better. The Ministers have said that they will work with those necessary stakeholders. We need to ensure that there is a grant scheme that will be applicable because that will involve management companies, residents and the likes of Frontline Energy. We need to deliver for these people, given the huge costs. We all will be aware of the environmental disaster that is these gas-fed systems.
I thank the Deputies for their questions.
Deputy Paul Murphy raised the issue of the pollution of the River Poddle. I do not know the facts or the details but I will make sure that my office makes further inquiries about it.
Deputy Boyd Barrett raised the issue of the retrofitting of homes. I am told by the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, that the programme is going well and that we will meet or exceed our target to retrofit 30,000 homes this year. We have made some changes to the SEAI grant. One can now pay the difference rather than having to pay the total amount upfront. There are plans for low-cost loans. I will certainly get an update for the Deputy on the programme and how it is going. Obviously, we are retrofitting housing that belongs to the Government, the social housing stock, too.
Deputy Barry raised the issue of the poor condition of Lough Neagh and the environmental damage to it. I understand there are many different causes. Abstraction is one of those, but perhaps not the only one. Any decision, I believe, on the next steps would have to be one taken by the Northern Ireland authorities.
Finally, on district heating, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, has been appointed as the regulator for district heating and will be responsible for the development of appropriate regulation for the sector going forward. Primary legislation will be required to ensure developers of district heating projects have the necessary legal powers to operate in the sector and ensure consumer protections, as well as put in place licensing and consenting provisions for district heating operations, including those heated by geothermal. The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications is currently developing the heads of a proposed heat Bill, which the Department intends to bring to Government next year.