Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

I welcome the general thrust of this Bill as it indicates an anxiety to address an issue that needs to be tackled. The Minister himself has indicated that. It also serves to focus on the issues to which the Bill refers because failure to focus on a subject is failure to do anything about it. It is appropriate that the Green Party introduce the Bill at this time, given that the issues involved have affected us in the last ten to 15 years, but will affect us to a far greater extent in the next 20 to 25 years.

I agree that there should be a long-term plan for energy use and conservation. There should also be a medium-term plan and I fully agree that there should be a short-term plan. These plans should be interlinked, interdependent and updated on a regular basis. Otherwise, we will not be able to identify our energy uses and emissions, how they are changing and the degree to which we must comply under the Kyoto Protocol. We need to focus on the limits that must be met and the Bill has much to offer in going about that task. The Minister has been very critical of the Bill, but it is a genuine attempt by a party to address the issues. We are all in the same business at the same time. My party identified the same issues a few weeks ago, with a different emphasis in different areas.

The object of the exercise is to achieve the following outcomes. We must reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and on imported fuels. We must introduce a greater degree of reliance on renewable energy and ensure that all we do reduces emissions into the atmosphere. This does not require rocket science and everybody can play some part. The Minister mentioned the question of engine emission labelling. Engine efficiency labelling is equally important. There is a great difference between a motor vehicle that yields 20 to 25 miles to the gallon — we have plenty of them in the country — and a motor vehicle that delivers 60 miles to the gallon. The two vehicles are capable of doing a similar job. There is a huge difference in the emissions and in the import costs of both vehicles. I am not suggesting there should be a carbon tax because I am loath to offer the Government other ways of raising taxes, especially on an over-burdened society that has been hammered by the Government with all kinds of taxes in the last seven or eight years. However, the same result can be achieved by efficiency labelling to which the Green Party Deputies referred, as did the Minister by his own admission. These actions require the co-operation of a number of Departments, including the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, the Minister for Transport and the Minister for Agriculture and Food. The thrust of Fine Gael policy in this area was to focus attention on what each of these Departments could do to bring about a position whereby we were less dependent on energy imports, had greater energy efficiency and delivered a reduction in emissions.

Conservation and insulation are capable of making the single biggest contribution to reduction in emissions in that area. It is very simple, requires little effort and is beneficial to the community and the economy. It does not improve the revenue prospects for the Government, but who worries about that? It has the ability to reduce the dependency on imported oil by up to 23%. Other speakers referred to growing crops for alternative energy sources such as biofuels. It is an area that has considerable scope. It does not necessarily follow that we would make a fortune from it, but it could reduce emissions.

Wind energy has the greatest potential of all in replacing existing energies based on fossil fuels simply by generating more wind energy. The Minister referred to the difficulties we have had recently with environmental rules. There is also a difficulty in getting access to the grid. There are currently several groups producing alternative energy through wind generated electricity that have been held up in their attempts to get access to the grid. Many of these groups have despaired of the situation.

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