Results 141-160 of 29,430 for speaker:Eamon Ryan

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety (15 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: As the Deputy is aware, policy responsibility for road safety lies within the remit of my Department, however, responsibility for deer and other wildlife resides with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), within the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue is also acutely aware of the importance of...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety (15 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the National Development Plan (NDP), the operation and maintenance of individual national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. This is...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Electric Vehicles (15 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Government is fully committed to supporting a significant expansion of the electric vehicle charging network over the coming years. Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland (ZEVI), a dedicated Office which oversees and accelerate Ireland’s transition to zero emission vehicles, has significant funding available in 2024 for the installation of EV charging across Ireland. While home...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Regulatory Bodies (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) is an independent regulator, accountable to a committee of the Oireachtas and not the Minister. The Commission for Regulation of Utilities was assigned responsibility for the regulation of the Irish electricity sector following the enactment of the Electricity Regulation Act, 1999 and subsequent legislation. The Commission for Regulation of...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Recycling Policy (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Reuse and repair are key activities to support resource efficiency within a circular economy. The Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme, funded by my Department, directly supports the growth of the circular economy in Ireland via a competitive funding process. The scheme aims to support innovation and demonstration circular economy projects by small to medium enterprises and social...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Seveso III Directive was implemented by the Chemicals Act and the Control of Major Accident Hazards involving Dangerous Substances or COMAH Regulations 2015. The COMAH Regulations have a strong and explicit link to the Classification, Labelling and Packaging Regulations (CLP). I am advised that, under the CLP, a battery, as part of a battery energy storage system (BESS), is not considered...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Conservation (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Climate Action Plan and National Retrofit Plan set targets to install 45,000 heat pumps in existing homes by end-2025 and a total of 400,000 by 2030. Data from SEAI shows that in the period 2019 to end-April 2024, 148,640 property upgrades have been supported. Of these, 11,730 have installed a heat pump, mostly under the SEAI part-funded, demand-led schemes. In addition, data from the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Climate Action Plan 2023 tasked the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, (CRU), with the delivery of a National Energy Demand Strategy, with the aim of 20% to 30% of electricity to be flexible by 2030. Large Energy Users will be expected to make up a higher proportional contribution to the flexibility target, as they are making up a high proportion of the increase in electricity...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Just Transition (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Government is committed to a just transition to ensure that nobody is left behind as we take action to achieve a climate neutral society by no later than 2050. Through the annual Climate Action Plan, the Government is mainstreaming the Just Transition Framework across sectoral policy to enable a transition that is fair and equitable. This Framework as established in the 2021 Climate...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: North-South Interconnector (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The North-South Interconnector is an essential infrastructure project that will link the electricity transmission networks of Ireland and Northern Ireland — leading to a more secure, affordable and sustainable supply of electricity across the island. It will facilitate the connection of 900 MW of renewable generation, enough to power 600,000 homes through green energy. As a...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Action Plan (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Local Authorities had a statutory requirement to prepare Local Authority Climate Action Plans (LA CAPs). I made a request to each Local Authority to begin preparation of their plans in February 2023 and issued statutory guidelines to support them in this work in March 2023. All 31 LA CAPs have been adopted by the elected members in each Local Authority area. In 2022, €3.2 million...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Renewable Energy Generation (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Small Scale Renewable Support Scheme (SRESS) will support non-domestic renewable electricity generators above 50kW, but smaller than those supported under the utility scale Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS). This scheme will enable community projects, larger businesses, farms, and public buildings to maximise their participation in the energy transition. The first phase of...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Offshore Renewable Energy Development Plan (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: On 3 May last, I published Ireland’s first draft offshore renewable energy (ORE) Designated Maritime Area Plan (DMAP). The draft DMAP is focused on the sea area off the South Coast and identifies four maritime areas for proposed future deployments of fixed offshore wind to deploy by 2030 and beyond. This includes identification of one maritime area, known as Tonn Nua, for a proposed...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: State Bodies (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) operates the Warmer Homes Scheme on behalf of my Department. Delivering free energy upgrades to low-income households and reducing the waiting times for the Warmer Homes Scheme is a top priority for my Department and the SEAI. Last year saw a record spend of €158 million under the Scheme and there is a further increased allocation of...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Action Plan (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Local Authorities have a statutory requirement to prepare Local Authority Climate Action Plans (LA CAPs) under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021. In March 2023, I published statutory guidelines to assist Local Authorities in preparing their plans. These guidelines include a requirement to ensure ongoing monitoring and progress reporting. Each Local Authority...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Conservation (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) operates the National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme on behalf of my Department. The Scheme supports homeowners wishing to undertake a whole home energy upgrade to achieve a BER of at least B2 through SEAI registered One-Stop-Shops (OSSs). OSSs provide an end-to-end service for homeowners, which includes surveying; designing the upgrades;...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Renewable Energy Generation (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Through the first two Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS) auctions, my Department has provided pathways and supports for communities to participate in renewable energy projects through the application of a community projects category. Seven community projects were successful in the RESS 1 auction and of these, three have now energised. These community energy projects have been...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Government has committed to deliver up to 5.7TWh of indigenously produced biomethane by 2030. In order to deliver on this commitment, a dedicated Biomethane Working Group, chaired by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine, has been established to oversee an all-of-government approach to developing a National Biomethane Strategy to support the achievement of this target in a...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Grant Payments (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Homeowners eligible for works under the Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) scheme may apply for energy upgrade grants administered by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). Homeowners whose applications comply with the existing SEAI Scheme criteria and guidelines can access SEAI grants in line with the usual application processes that apply. Further information in that regard is...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Recycling Policy (14 May 2024)

Eamon Ryan: No tax has been or will be collected on plastic bottles or aluminium cans under the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). Data relating to the fully-refundable deposits paid is being provided by producers and retailers to Re-Turn in respect of each month. This is a new obligation on producers and retailers and requires some time for collation and verification by Re-Turn. To date, over 105m...