Mr. Stephen Treacy:

With regard to organic soils and the 8 million tonnes, this is clearly an area where action can be targeted. As we pointed out, however, there is great uncertainty with regard to exactly where those 350,000 ha are and exactly what measures to re-wet that land or raise or manage the water table on it will achieve. Research in that regard is ongoing. It is in the Teagasc plan to re-wet approximately 40,000 ha, which it has estimated will save 4.4 million ha over the 2021-2030 period. There is definitely substantial potential in this regard.

Members must also recognise that much of that land has likely been in productive agriculture for quite some time. It may not be either socially or technologically very easy to re-wet that land. It is not our direct area of expertise but there are unknowns there, particularly around where it is, what is currently happening on that land and the ease or otherwise with which it could be re-wet. From a purely theoretical perspective, substantial reduced emissions could be achieved by managing the water table on that land.

I will address the Deputy's final question on land use and the future and perhaps Dr. McGovern will take the question on methane. There are not that many easy options left. The Climate Action Plan 2019 contains a lot of very challenging measures. On land use, clearly we need to act now in terms of planting forestry, for example, if we are to use that or if that is to be a factor for removals out to 2050. As it stands, afforestation rates are low enough that forestry is likely to become a source post 2030 as things stand. There are actions, even though they are long-term, particularly on the land side, which need the action now to actually deliver in 20 or 30 years' time. That is where I will leave it.