Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 22 October 2025

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate, Environment and Energy

Climate Change Targets 2026-2030: Discussion (Resumed)

2:00 am

Mr. Eamonn Stapleton:

Of course there could, particularly for urban contracts. Much of that should be done by electrified vehicles, because it would cut emissions in urban locations. In greenfield sites, there is big machinery and big machinery is not at the point yet where it can be electrified but it can use HVO fuel. It still has the same emissions to some degree, but it is a much better way than what is currently being done. The incentives are either a reduction in the cost or paying it through the contracts and so on. In terms of what the industry itself can do, and both Professor Kinnane and Mr. Barry hinted at this, a lot of it is design based, which is not within our remit. We cannot decide what goes into the built environment. We can only do it as efficiently as we can. Through the environmental, social and governance, ESG, committee we have, which is a mixture of the top-tier contractors and operators with two or three guys, they are all making their best efforts through what is available, but it is only a small part of the jigsaw. Professor Kinnane's contribution told a big story about the challenges for it. We want more work, but the more work we get, the more carbon we are going to be generating. Data is important so we at least know where we are making some gains on it, but all the time on the bigger dial it might be moving in the wrong direction. The construction industry through the ESG committee is driving every single, little, minor thing we can.

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