Noel Coonan (Tipperary North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Pat Rabbitte, whom we have invited to discuss a cross-departmental issue which comes within the remit of more than one Oireachtas committee for scrutiny. Before we begin, I remind members that we should approach this discussion from the remit of this committee. Therefore, I ask them to concentrate on issues with which we are concerned, the first of which is the location of any proposed windmill in Ireland and the consultation process to be engaged in to allow the views of local communities to be heard and their concerns met in so far as is possible. The second concerns how the installation and operation of windmills will contribute to Ireland's obligations to meets its carbon reduction targets and to what extent they will reduce our dependence on imported fossil fuels. The Minister is joined by Mr. Kenneth Spratt, whom I also welcome. I invite the Minister to give us an overview of the current position.