Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is important that we have a national picture of the areas that are liable to flooding. This country will have to set aside specific resources to deal with such matters as the loss of Arctic sea ice and the rise in ocean temperatures. We do not know whether it will be on the scale of €2 billion or more, but in the next 15 to 20 years we will have to make a strategic plan and make arrangements to deal with it. Next year will be the first time we will have an idea of the scale of the challenge the country faces on a national basis. The task remains to be dealt with by whatever Government is in office in the future. The analysis has been put together by the Office of Public Works in conjunction with local communities and local authorities. The catchment flood risk assessment and management plans will be published next year, giving Ireland its own idea of the scale of what we must achieve. I was in Galway last year when the high tide met the high floods and the situation was a disaster in a short time. Strategic measures must be developed and put in place in Cork city and in Dublin to attempt to cope with nature, which as we are all aware is virtually impossible to deal with when it gets really angry.

The intention was to set out principles and to follow that with legislation and to introduce targets based on scientific accuracy. It is only right that we should be able to go to certain areas and say that we want to play our part but what happened previously was not realistic. We indicated what is realistic and provided the scientific evidence to prove it. We outlined that we would measure up to the following targets. On the basis of the European Council recognising Ireland’s agri-sector, and the contribution of afforestation and the planting of new trees in terms of sequestration, that gives Ireland’s negotiators a really strong back wall against which they can plan for the period from 2020 to 2030. I do not wish to see a situation where the population is crucified with enormous fines because of unrealistic targets being set when we know what will happen will be different. The Minister will introduce the Bill in due course, as I outlined.

We have a carbon emissions policy at the moment. Hydrofluorocarbons, HFCs, are very powerful man-made greenhouse gases, with warming effects hundreds of thousands of times more powerful than CO2. At present, they represent approximately 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, but they are growing faster than any other greenhouse gas. The initiative supports a global phase-down of HFCs under the Montreal Protocol. It commits Ireland to taking action to promote public procurement of climate-friendly alternatives wherever feasible and a gradual transition to equipment that uses more sustainable alternatives to HFCs. During Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union last year played a key role in the negotiation on the new regulation on fluoridated greenhouse gases, which includes a phase-down of HFCs.

As a country that is highly dependent on road-based freight, the global action plan for green freight offers a welcome opportunity to learning and to sharing our experience with other countries, business and civil society. The action plan aims to raise the awareness and to work towards both aligning and enhancing existing green freight efforts through knowledge sharing, peer-to-peer partnerships and exchanges between Government and industry. We are currently examining a range of options to support a reduction in emissions. Such options would be aligned to the thrust of the action plan and would seek to minimise the negative impacts of freight on the environment in respect of costs, emissions and air quality. As Deputy Adams is aware, over the years the changes brought about in terms of VRT and taxation related to emissions has resulted in a reduction in emissions, which has played a not insignificant part.

See this speech in context