Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will speak to my amendment No. 111. It comes back to the issue of biogenic methane we discussed last week. Again, I am not looking for agriculture to be given a free pass in this legislation but I am looking for a separate and distinct target for biogenic methane. As I said last week, I am not referring to the issue of nitrous oxide but specifically to biogenic methane. Substantial progress can be made in agriculture, particularly in terms of land use, which Deputy Seán Sherlock spoke about earlier. The reality is the first deadline for emissions reductions is now 233 weeks away. The only way we can achieve significant reductions across the agricultural sector that will have a real impact in that period of time is through herd reduction. At the weekend, we saw the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine point out that there will be a freeze on herd numbers in the dairy sector, which implicitly means there will be a reduction in the beef sector. That would be of huge concern, particularly on marginal land where no other farming practice can manage that land and provide for the variation of biodiversity we spoke about this morning.

The issue of biogenic methane is clearly reflected in EU policy and in the contributions of the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and his predecessor Deputy Richard Bruton, last week. It is enshrined in legislation in New Zealand, a country with a very similar climate profile to Ireland. Insufficient recognition is being given to the issue of biogenic methane. Perhaps the Minister of State can return to the issue of definitions in his response. While reference is made to biogenic methane in the Bill, no specific definition is outlined. As the Minister of State knows, the Climate Change Advisory Council explicitly stated there should be a very clear definition for biogenic methane and it should be accounted for separately in our emissions target. The Climate Change Advisory Council goes on to state we should argue at EU level, and there is a valid argument, for a separate target for biogenic methane.

It is very hard to have an EU-wide target for biogenic methane when we are not prepared to differentiate it within our legislation. People are not publicly admitting this but the reality is, whether we like it or not, and the Climate Change Advisory Council have stated this as well, at present no means are available at scale to reduce enteric methane emissions without reducing livestock numbers. We need to be clear about that. Otherwise, we need to ensure there is a separate individual target for biogenic methane.