Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State did not answer my question on what Moneypoint power station will be converted to and where, if it is biomass, the material will come from? Natural gas supplies will last for a further ten years at best, based on current information.

The Minister of State mentioned developing solar generation in the mid-2020s. That needs to be fast-tracked because the mid-2020s is not soon enough. We should have done this yesterday and, failing that, we need to start doing it tomorrow. Solar is a potential energy source that we are not tapping into, while biogas is another. It is recognised across Europe that Ireland has considerable potential for biogas because of its large agricultural sector.

We need to be cautious with biomass because if we import the bulk of the material from outside the State, the carbon miles involved in transporting it will mean we will not reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. We need to develop these new industries. Hydropower, for example, is not being considered and we are not making any progress in developing it. We need more concrete action.

This year has been catastrophic in terms of climate change. In the past eight years, I have raised with every Minister a gaping hole in their policies, namely, the failure to use one of the arms of the State, local authorities, to address climate change. The role of local authorities has been repeatedly scaled down, as anybody who has served on a council will recognise. We need to give the 31 local authorities a serious role in tackling climate change and a responsibility for climate action. I appeal to the new Minister and the Minister of State to listen to what I am saying. We should give local authorities a greater role in this area.

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