Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

I join my colleagues in welcoming the fact that time has been made available by the Whips to discuss this important issue. The debate follows the establishment of the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security, of which I have the honour of being Vice Chairman. I look forward to working with my colleague, Deputy Barrett, and other committee members during the term of this Dáil and discussing many of the issues raised in this debate.

There is no doubt that in the past year the issue of climate change has come into the public's consciousness much more than heretofore when it was seen as an issue that did not affect us and had no impact on our daily lives. One year on there is greater recognition of its impact. Many are willing to put the funny weather down to it. The Government has led the debate on the topic, despite some of the comments heard from the other side of the House.

I particularly welcome the national climate change strategy, published in April this year. It is a comprehensive document and sets out how we will meet our targets and responsibilities under the Kyoto Protocol. It brings together the range of actions being taken by the Government to reduce Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions. It sets out how we will co-operate internationally with a view to achieving further reductions in emissions across the world. It affects everybody and everybody has a role to play. It is important that the joint committee consider it on a cross-party, non-political basis. It is also important to recognise that such a strategy is not new; it follows the document published in 2000.

Despite what Deputy Deenihan said about our moving backwards on our commitments, one has to look at the way in which the country has developed economically and industrially during the past ten years. When one places the development of the country and its transformation beside our increased emissions, one has a fair perspective.

The national climate change strategy looks beyond the Kyoto Protocol scenario. It shows that the total contribution of measures adopted by the Government will account for 80% of the efforts that Ireland will need to make to meet its Kyoto Protocol commitments. The remaining 20% will be made up by our use of flexible mechanisms which will allow us and other parties to support the development of clean technologies in return for emissions credits. Companies, governments and community organisations need to pay far more attention to the idea of carbon credits and how they can be used to offset our daily usage of energy necessary for living and business. Many companies are now beginning to do this in their policies and in the context of CSR and other issues.

The National Treasury Management Agency which has done such fantastic work in debt management and pensions management will assume the State's responsibilities in the area of carbon funds. I look forward to it exercising its skills in dealing with the issue. The public sector will have to lead the debate. The House will be forced to make decisions in conjunction with planning authorities and local authorities in the next year or so. The Government has started by adopting a number of practical measures which may not grab headlines but will lead to a reduction in energy usage. I have in mind the smart metering project which the Minister announced in recent weeks and to which there was a huge reaction in my constituency office from persons seeking information on it. The meters indicate the times when it is good to use electricity, when it will cost more, as well as current usage in one's home. Sustainable Energy Ireland is running a pilot programme and the sooner it is introduced in every house, the sooner the people will become involved in making their contribution.

The Government has moved to require all State bodies to exclusively use energy efficient light bulbs by the end of this year. In that regard, I note the HSE dispute about light bulbs in the south has been resolved. Let us hope there will not be another in regard to the installation of energy efficient light bulbs. What we have to do is challenging but its impact, in terms of what we take for granted, will be extraordinary.

The strategy shows that through a combination of existing and additional measures, we will be able to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by more than 17 million tonnes in the next four years. Additional measures encompass policies adopted in March 2006. The quantified reductions include some 13.6 million tonnes from domestic actions and 3.6 million tonnes credited to the Government. They also involve investment on behalf of the State in developing economies, thus strengthening our role in supporting such economies.

The key practical measures under the national climate change strategy will affect all of us. It is hoped 15% of electricity supplies will be generated using renewable sources by 2010, increasing to 33% by 2020. The renewable sources include wind energy. There will also be a new national ocean energy strategy. Across the country we have already seen opposition to the introduction of wind turbines, to which a conservative approach has been adopted by some local authorities. It is important to bring forward a national policy on wind energy to assist in meeting our targets.

There is a need to support combined heat and power projects, an area in which business will have a role to play in reducing energy output. There is no doubt that combined heat and power projects can help to do this but they are expensive and there is still a lack of awareness about their effectiveness. An awareness campaign undertaken by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment could be assisted.

The easy target in tackling climate change is transport. The investments to be made under Transport 21, which we debated last week, to encourage and make it more attractive for people to use public transport are welcome. The more people we get out of their cars and SUVs onto public transport the better. We have taken huge strides, particularly in our cities. It is important we continue those strides in rural areas. I would like to see further support given to rural transport projects. It never ceases to amaze me that our city colleagues complain about the DART, buses and matters about which we in rural areas know little. The Departments of Transport and Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs have made a substantial investment in rural transport projects which are voluntarily run within communities. This is taking many cars off the roads as well as allowing people to retain their independence in their communities. We need to see more investment, which could be included under this heading.

CIE, as the biggest public transport provider, is being required to move to biodiesel. Many people are interested in using biofuels in their cars but availability is restricted at present. We need a further debate in the House, perhaps at committee level, on the growth of biocrops as opposed to the growth of food crops. This will be one of the major challenges facing the entire climate strategy in the next year to 18 months as we make a choice between energy and food. We already have enough challenges on the food side without this further one.

In recent years the Government has pushed the building and construction sector towards cleaner emissions levels. The revised building regulations published earlier this year by the Minister, Deputy Gormley, aim for a 40% improvement in current thermal performance standards. With the new building energy rating certification which was introduced in 2007, a variety of companies are already involved in training people to inspect energy ratings and educating people about energy rating in their homes. I had the pleasure of working with one such company in my town.

A number of issues arise with regard to energy protection. As a Deputy for County Mayo, I am only too well aware of the issues in regard to the Corrib gas field. Much work, investment and time has gone into assuaging concerns in regard to the safety of that project. Huge investment in terms of people power and Government time has also been made. It is time we proceeded with the project. Many outside experts have accounted for its safety and the country needs the energy supply from it.

I reiterate the concerns expressed with regard to the separation of the ESB. The old ESB had a community focus, even regarding a matter as minor as that of Christmas lights, which the ESB used to provide at a highly discounted rate. Such matters must now go to tender because of the competitive market. In the rush to liberalisation, we need to ensure community participation and focus is retained.

In the coming period I look forward to the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security having the chance to discuss these issues. The final commitment in the strategy is that it must be reviewed each year by this House through that committee, which will ensure the House has a role in maintaining our obligations.

See this speech in context