Mary Flaherty
Ceist:1 Miss Flaherty asked the Minister for Energy if he will outline any new initiatives taken or being planned to conserve energy.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Energy Conservation.
New initiatives in the energy conservation field which I have sponsored are: a project to investigate the potential for using groundwater resources in central Dublin for space heating; a project to install energy management systems in two hospitals; a programme being embarked on by the ESB to promote efficiency in electricity end use; and the establishment of a National Energy Conservation and Efficiency Advisory Group. This group has completed work on certain priority conservation options. These are being examined at present, with a view to acting on as many of the proposals as is practicable.
I welcome the brevity of the Minister's reply and I welcome the establishment of a National Energy Conservation and Efficiency Advisory Group. Is the Minister aware, however, that the EC sectoral energy objectives for 1995 ask each country to undertake conservation measures affecting 20 per cent of our energy use? Does the Minister seriously think that the minimal projects he has mentioned in his reply will go towards achieving this in any degree?
The Deputy should be careful, as I am merely replying to the question she asks. The Deputy only asked about new initiatives taken or being planned to conserve energy, but I cannot give details of projects that are planned until they have reached a certain point. If I was to outline to the Deputy all the many ongoing measures in this area, I would be giving her a long reply, which she does not want, today anyway. The Deputy should look at the latter part of my response where I refer to the work of the advisory group, and state that the projects which they have recommended are under active consideration in the Department. I am actively involved and am anxious to achieve major progress in this area. Today I am merely listing some of the initiatives that have been taken during my time in the Department, but that does not mean that there are not many other projects that are planned at present and which I am not in a position to give details of as yet, and many others already under way under previous programmes.
Does the Minister accept the figure established by my predecessor, which is probably conservative, that £400 million could be saved by this economy if we took this issue seriously enough? Can the Minister explain why there was a cut of almost 30 per cent under the conservation heading of his budget?
This seems to be worthy of another question.
I have no doubt that there are very substantial cash savings that can be achieved through the application of rigorous conservation methods and rigidly applying energy efficiency systems, but there is great difficulty in getting that message across to industry, the general public and to each individual. There is waste all around us. If we were to eliminate all the waste in our lives, then I have no doubt that we would achieve savings perhaps even greater than the figure the Deputy mentioned.
Question No. 2 please.
A Cheann Comhairle, the Minister was still replying to my question.
The Chair is hoping for brevity.
The level of funding for conservation activities has had to be curtailed in recent years due to severe difficulties in the State's finances. Since 1981, State expenditure for this programme has amounted to approximately £6 million. Funding for conservation peaked in 1981 at £2.132 million. It should be mentioned that the benefits of any expenditure undertaken in the past will, of course, continue into the future and the budget this year of £570,000 is three to four times the level of the annual expenditure during the seventies and about double the average expenditure for the years 1984 to 1989.