Christopher O'Sullivan
Ceist:34. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the Final Climate Action Plan 2023 Progress Report, published by his Department in March 2024. [20307/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 21 May 2024
Ceisteanna (34)
Freagraí scríofa
The Department of the Taoiseach prepares progress reports on the delivery of measures committed to under the Climate Action Plan. These progress reports provide a detailed breakdown of completed and delayed actions and are published online, once considered by Government.
The final progress report for the 2023 Climate Action Plan (CAP23) was published on the 5th of March this year. It provides information on actions that were due to be completed in Quarter 4 of 2023.
The report is framed around the six high impact sectors for climate action: Agriculture, Transport, Electricity, Buildings, Land Use, and Industry. The Report also provides updates on established performance indicators, sectoral emissions trends and high impact actions.
In total, 161 new actions were scheduled to be completed in Quarter 4 2023. Ninety-six (96) of these, or 60%, were delivered during the three months in question.
For 2023 as a whole, 188 of 290 actions were delivered, giving an overall implementation rate of 65% for CAP23.
High-impact actions completed in Q4 2023 include:
· 65 new and enhanced services in 2023 under the Connecting Ireland public transport programme, linking 194 towns nationwide;
· a record budget allocation for SEAI retrofit schemes, which supported over 47,800 property upgrades in 2023; a 76% increase on 2022 delivery;
· releasing a new National Adaptation Framework for public consultation;
· delivery of green skills apprenticeships, including new modules and courses in Nearly Zero Energy Buildings and Modern Methods of Construction; and
· commencing the ‘Solar for Schools’ Programme, which will roll out on a phased basis to include 4,000 schools nationwide.
The 2024 update of the climate action plan continues this focus on delivery of high impact actions, including those from CAP23 that were not completed by year-end as well as new actions included for 2024.
The most recent EPA inventory figures show that Ireland’s emissions fell by nearly 2% between 2021 and 2022. While the EPA has not yet released its figures for 2023, published figures from the SEAI suggest that energy emissions fell by 7% overall with emissions from electricity falling by 21%.
Continued, and indeed faster, delivery of actions under the Climate Action Plan is essential in the face of our commitment to extremely challenging and legally-binding EU and national emissions reduction targets.
Questions Nos. 35 to 39, inclusive, resubmitted.