Mr. Charles Stanley-Smith:

I am going to speak to a few of the recommendations. On recommendation 4, the vulnerability assessment, we agree this is a necessary requirement and there needs to be serious public participation in the design of the process. The assessment should be down to the level of individual structures such as individual dams or rail lines.

On recommendation 7, ending subsidies for peat, Mr. Coghlan has already talked about this and argued there should be a means of transitioning and using the money from the PSA to do so. I note, however, there currently is no sustainable biomass in the world to run Moneypoint and the peat stations. It does not exist. We do need more interconnectors to Europe, an issue which is not talked about enough. Modern forecasting methods are leading to better control of wind and solar generation. This means that the need for base-load generation, which is normally provided by Moneypoint and other peat stations, is actually dropping. It is becoming increasingly possible to run the grid much more actively than is currently the case. The other side that is not taken into account and does have a climate change effect is the extraction and export of millions of tonnes of horticultural and other peat products. This needs to be counted in our overall emissions. While we argue that the bogs should be rewetted, the arterial drainage scheme - started in 1945 when none of this was important - must be reviewed. We are currently draining high-carbon soil and this is producing around 5% to 10% of agricultural emissions. Any farming affected by this needs to be compensated, of course. However, it is a huge cause of agricultural emissions.

Moving on to recommendation 8 on bus lanes, cycle lanes and park and ride, the national planning framework understands the need for walkable communities and encourages investment in the provision of public transport, cycling and walking infrastructure. However, the national development plan, NDP - which is the money to be spent on that - is very different. A huge amount of it is going on motorways and the second runway at Dublin Airport. The Government make great claims that one fifth of the NDP is specifically for climate action, which is very positive and very true. Unfortunately, however, much of the other four fifths is counter-productive. A two thirds share of the transport budget for walking and cycling would be needed to drive the necessary behavioural change.

On the transition to electric vehicles, we believe the first priority should be to move away from car ownership altogether and towards public transport, car pooling, and shared electric car schemes such as those we see on the street now. Then should come the move towards electric cars. They should be supported not just through fiscal encouragements but also fiscal discouragements as the continuation of petrol and diesel engine cars must be stopped.

A date for banning petrol and diesel cars in urban areas must be set to the same as other European cities.

The conversion of public transport to clean, electric power is a no-brainer; it just makes sense. It will improve the inbuilt air quality. Dublin's air quality is okay but it still leads to the death of a considerable number of people. Nitrogen oxides are a cause of huge health problems.

The Climate Change Advisory Council considered the issue of greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture and recommended that carbon tax be raised to €30 per tonne in general, rising to €80 per tonne by 2030. The Environmental Pillar feels that should start at €70 per tonne in 2019 and rise by €5 thereafter. Half of that should be given straight back to the people of Ireland in a carbon dividend shared to every adult. We do not want to introduce harm and hurt to people. They should be compensated all around the country. The other half should go to the Just Transition Fund, the climate action fund I have talked about.

A carbon tax of agricultural emissions should be similar to the polluter pays principle on the grounds of equity. A new report by Teagasc states that €50 per tonne is required to enable climate mitigation efforts in the sector. Teagasc has also stated that by far the largest driver of agricultural greenhouse gases is cattle numbers.

Ammonia emissions are another cause for concern in the agricultural area. They are harmful to health and add to carbon emissions. Ireland is definitely above the UN norms, if not the European norms, in ammonia emissions.

Ireland needs to ensure that the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, is reformed so that it can move from intensive ruminant-based farming to high nature value farming that provides more environmental protection. This would be particularly beneficial to the farmers in the west who really need the support.

On recommendation 12 on food waste, the Environmental Pillar believes that reporting of food waste at every stage will begin to encourage initiatives to address food waste at the start of the food supply chain, including farms.