Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 22 June 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action

Reduction of Carbon Emissions of 51% by 2030: Discussion (Resumed)

Photo of Christopher O'SullivanChristopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Yes. I recently visited an anaerobic digester in my locality and was blown away by the set-up and the fact that waste was being brought from the local piggery, chicken factory and farms. It was almost a co-operative-type operation where farmers from the hinterland would bring their waste to this facility. They guessed that it generated enough power to power a small town - about 1,000 homes. The waste that is left over after the energy is produced from the anaerobic digester is viable slurry to be spread on land with a far lower environmental impact than regular slurry. It really opened my eyes to something that could be done. I know other EU nations have rolled out anaerobic digesters to a far greater scale whereas Ireland is nowhere near where it should be. Does Mr. Keane have any suggestions on the role of anaerobic digestion in decarbonising farming in Ireland?

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