Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is a tricky area. Teagasc has indicated that, potentially, there are 9 million tonnes in carbon reductions that could be achieve in agriculture. They have looked at better farming methods, sequestration through forestry and other methods, and biofuels. There is theoretical potential. It is about how we capture that potential.

Deputy Neville is correct. The Irish beef sector is roughly 10% more efficient in carbon terms than the rest of Europe. We are much better in milk. We are approximately 33% more efficient in milk, pork and chicken. We have an edge. However, the non-ETS targets system does not give us credit for that. One would have to move agriculture into the ETS sector to get credits. Agriculture has not been put into that cap-and-trade part of the system.

We have to work with developing initiatives that could see us realising those theoretical gains that have been outlined by Teagasc. Clearly the size of the herd will be a factor because the herd size is very significant in this regard.

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