Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In two minutes, it is very difficult to do justice to the climate action plan but because I am distinctly underwhelmed by its content, it is probably best that I only have two minutes. In that time, I want to contribute briefly on both the home heating issue and agriculture. It is a hugely important document but it strikes me as a debate where all of the oxygen in the room was taken up with the debate about the sectoral targets and very little was left in terms of putting detail in the plan on what needs to be done. Nowhere is that more evident than with regard to home heating.

It is great that there are targets for 120,000 homes to be retrofitted by 2025 and 500,000 by 2030. Bravo, that is great, and to have heat pumps for those for whom it will work is fantastic. However, I have a question about putting all of our eggs in the electrification basket. What of the 1.5 million homes that are unmentioned in this regard? There is reference at page 170 in the document to accelerating the electrification of the remainder of those homes, most of which are heated by home heating oil boilers. Why is the report silent on hydrotreated vegetable oil, HVO, which is a sustainable alternative fuel? All new boilers are compatible with that technology. For €500, the existing boilers can be retrofitted with that technology, which would deliver a solution. For somebody whose house boiler goes belly-up, deep retrofitting is not a quick fix. Deep retrofitting is several months of work, and getting a contractor and possibly getting planning permission is a big job. I do not think it is wise to put all of our eggs in one basket in terms of electrification. If the power goes out, how are those homes going to be heated if they are entirely dependent on electricity?

This action plan, unfortunately, is not technology neutral and it should be, as long as it is delivering in terms of decarbonisation. HVO is delivering an 88% reduction in carbon heating. The plan, unfortunately, is entirely silent on agriculture. Farmers can deliver and they are the solution, but they can only deliver with proper incentives.

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