Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 25 Nov 1997

Vol. 483 No. 3

Written Answers. - Pollution Control.

Gay Mitchell

Ceist:

78 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will make a statement on the United Nations' sponsored global warming conference in Bonn; and if he will give details of the Irish stance at the conference. [18119/97]

John Gormley

Ceist:

80 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the efforts, if any, he is making to persuade his Cabinet colleagues of the need for this country to operate to agreed levels of CO 2 emissions in view of the forthcoming Kyoto Conference. [20182/97]

Minister for the Environment and Local Government (Mr. Dempsey)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 78 and 80 together.

I assume that Deputy Mitchell is referring to the forthcoming third conference of the parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to be held in Kyoto in the period 1-10 December 1997. In the context of current negotiations to strengthen the commitments under the framework convention, Ireland fully supports the agreed EU position which is that developed country parties, individually or jointly, should reduce emission levels of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, taken together, by 7.5 per cent and 15 per cent by 2005 and 2010 respectively compared to 1990 levels.

In the context of the EU position, the Government has adopted an indicative national target of limiting the growth of these emissions up to 2010 to 15 per cent above their 1990 levels.