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

I want to again stress the importance of the afforestation targets and how important this is for sequestration into the future. There is that old saying that the best time to plant a tree is 100 years ago and the next best time to plant a tree is today. We do not seem to be any closer to planting in the near future and we really need to get on top of that. I want to stress that point.

I have one question on transportation and I will come back in for a second round later. My question is for Ms Lennon and is in regard to haulage. This is going to be one of the most challenging sectors to decarbonise but, actually, the haulage sector is trying to come forward with innovative proposals as to how it can reduce emissions. One of those is hydrotreated vegetable oil, HVO. Ms Lennon referred to biofuels and hydrogen earlier but where does HVO come into this strategy? All the indications are that the use of HVO could lead to a reduction of 90% in emissions. It is perfectly suitable for haulage and even for public transport. The issue is that the cost differential is about 10 cent per litre when compared to diesel, and we know how high the cost of diesel is, so there is no incentive to use it and it is not being used widely. There is also an issue about how it is categorised when it comes to customs.

Decarbonising haulage and freight is going to be such an important way of achieving our emissions reductions in transport. There must be an urgency around HVO and how it can be implemented and used by the haulage sector. We have seen protests block up some of our big urban centres because of the challenges the haulage sector is facing. This could be a key win and a key way of reducing emissions, while also helping the haulage sector to come on board with this journey towards reducing emissions. I ask Ms Lennon to comment.