Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

We are in the process of drafting the national mitigation plan. The draft will be completed before the end of the year and will go for public consultation. It will be finalised next year. This will set down the blueprint and not just in my Department with regard to energy. It will also involve the built environment, with regard to the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government and the Minister, Deputy Coveney, and will also involve transport and agriculture. The capital plan that will be finalised next year will have to feed into this. As part of the discussions in the run-up to the budget this year, I made it clear to the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, that the capital plan will have to reflect what we are doing with regard to the mitigation plan. Yes, we have big challenge ahead of us. There is no doubt about this, but we have made start this year. Everyone is always looking at the glass as half empty. Let us start to look at it as half full. We have been a world leader with regard to hydrofluorocarbons. We were one of the first countries to put forward money on this. We are a world leader with regard to our dairy industry. We will be a world leader with regard to our beef industry. We are engaging with countries such as Tanzania, Costa Rica and New Zealand to see how we can improve agriculture efficiency and reduce emissions, not just for ourselves but for farmers throughout the world, particularly in the developing world where there will be a huge challenge post-2030.

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