Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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41. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the progress he has made on the national clean air strategy. [5696/17]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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75. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his plans to fully implement the nationwide ban on smoky coal; and if this will be in place for the 2018 heating season. [5695/17]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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574. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the status of his Department's national clean air strategy. [5412/17]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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575. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the date on which the nationwide smoky coal ban will come into effect. [5414/17]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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I welcome the Minister back to the House. I want to know the progress on the national clean air strategy, which is an issue close to my heart. For the information of Deputies, more people die due to the quality of air in this country than die in road accidents. It is a huge issue, and one on which we have made major progress. I would like the Minister to give us good news in regard to the current position.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 41, 75, 574 and 575 together.

The ban on the marketing, sale and distribution of bituminous coal - the smoky coal ban, as it is commonly known - was first introduced in Dublin in 1990 and subsequently extended to the major cities. Following a more recent public consultation process in 2012, it was extended and now applies to 26 urban areas nationwide. The ban has proved very effective in reducing particulate matter and sulphur dioxide levels, and has had the effect of significantly improving public health.  Research indicates, for example, that the ban has resulted in over 350 fewer annual deaths in Dublin alone.

An all-island research study commenced in 2014 into policy options to deal with the problem of airborne pollution from residential fuel combustion, in particular, smoky coal. The study, undertaken under the auspices of the North-South Ministerial Council, was finalised in December 2015 and subsequently presented to Ministers.  The report supports the extension of the ban areas in the Republic and smoke control areas in the North. While I would like to see a joint approach by authorities to the introduction of an all-island ban on smoky coal, it is, of course, also a matter for authorities in the North to consider.

Notwithstanding the timing of decisions in the North and the position taken there, I am committed to extending a ban nationwide in this jurisdiction. The process necessarily involves discussion and consultation with a wide number of stakeholders, including the European Commission, relevant Government Departments and agencies, the residential fuel industry and the general public.  Preliminary discussions on issues that may arise in connection with the proposed nationwide ban have already taken place with some of these stakeholders.

My Department is currently developing a national clean air strategy which will provide the strategic framework for a set of cross-Government policies and actions to reduce harmful emissions, and consequential health impacts, by improving our air quality. The strategy will also address a wide range of other national policies that are relevant to air quality, such as transport, energy and agriculture. Residential home heating is a key source of air pollution, in particular heating generated from solid fuel and smoky coal. As such, there is a pre-existing commitment to extend the smoky coal ban nationwide by 2018. This issue will be addressed in the strategy and a consultation process on the strategy will commence shortly. I expect the strategy to be published by the end of this year and that it will, inter alia, confirm the timeline for a nationwide extension of the ban on smoky coal.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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I have good time for the Minister but, to be honest, that is not an answer. In fact, the Minister did not answer the question at all. We have lost 15 months on this. The Minister knows it is an issue that is close to my heart and that I introduced the clean air strategy, but, 15 months on, nothing has happened. The smoky coal ban which was to be in place for the 2017-18 season has now been pushed back.

Children in Enniscorthy have a much higher risk of getting cancer than children in Dublin, as has been proven by research from UCC to which the Minister did not refer. We all know this is necessary. The officials who did all of this work have been left in the Customs House and have not transferred across to the Minister's Department. Has that caused the delay? I know what I am talking about because I drove this strategy, which is very close to my heart. Too many people suffer respiratory illnesses and there are 470,000 people with asthma in this country, which is the fourth highest rate in the world. This is a necessary strategy. The ban on coal in Dublin worked and saved thousands of lives. We cannot afford to have the children of Enniscorthy, and of other towns in parts of the country where there is no ban, go through another year without a ban. I ask the Minister to introduce a ban and also to put forward a clean air strategy across transportation and the other sectors. While we know this will take time, the issue in regard to smoky coal does not have to take any more time.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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5 o’clock

I acknowledge the work Deputy Kelly has done in this area. Part of the problem is that, effectively, we had no Government in place for the first half of last year. Since I became Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment this has been one of my priorities, especially now because the Department has responsibility not only for environmental issues but for climate change and energy issues as well. The clear air strategy dovetails into the policies covering these three divisions of my Department.

Deputy Kelly is right to ask whether the strategy will be in place by 2018. The intention is to have it in place by 2018 in respect of the ban on coal. The clean air strategy is going for public consultation within the coming weeks. I look forward to the engagement of Deputy Kelly in this regard. I have been engaging with the Environmental Protection Agency to determine how we can improve monitoring in this area. I have held several meetings with other bodies, such as the Asthma Society of Ireland.

Deputy Kelly is right. The reality is that four people per day in Ireland are dying directly as a result of poor air quality. This is having a great impact on admissions to our accident and emergency departments and congestion within the health system. That is why we have introduced the warmth and well-being pilot scheme. That is why I made an announcement in Ballymahon some weeks ago to deal specifically with the problem, especially in the midlands, where in approximately one home in four, the major source of heating is solid fuel. The idea is to look at how we can make a transition away from that. I am determined not only to implement the clean air strategy and to put in place the ban on coal but to make a transition from dirty fuels to clearer fuels to deal with this issue.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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I do not doubt the sincerity of the Minister. I am raising this issue because people feel let down. They have come to me as the former Minister with responsibility in this area. The strategy was to be announced by the middle of last year, if not before. The Minister has committed to a smoky coal ban by 2018 on the record of the Dáil. Since notification must be made one year in advance to those selling the product, the process has to commence now. Otherwise, it will not be until 2019. The announcement is required one year in advance. Sellers have to get through their stock. It is already out there. I presume the Minister will announce his plan in the coming days because otherwise, it will be impossible for it to be in place in 2018.

The clean air strategy covers a range of different sectoral issues, including transport, agriculture, peatlands and so on. These are major issues and addressing them will take time, but this issue need not. Unfortunately, the problem affects children and adults throughout the country. I can visualise children playing on pitches. I referenced the town of Enniscorthy because it was one of the worst in the UCC study. Children in such places are going to get sick. Some will get very unwell. Unfortunately, people may die because this is postponed for another year.

I appeal to the Minister to do this. Everything was put in place. I do not accept the explanation about people not transferring from one Department to another when there was a change of ministerial responsibility. That is not a good enough excuse for the situation these families have been left in.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I have never given the issue of staff transferring as a reason. The staff are answerable to me and I am working closely with them on the matter.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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They are based in the Custom House.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I have been working closely with them since I became Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment at the end of July.

It does not only apply to Enniscorthy. Enniscorthy has been flagged because we have an air monitoring station there. In fact, we have a poor network for monitoring air quality in the country. That is part of the problem. This was one of the issues I discussed with the Environmental Protection Agency last week.

The fact is that one child in five in the country suffers from asthma. Anyone who has seen a child gasping for breath knows how serious this issue is. That is why I want to see it prioritised. One of the first speeches I gave as Minister was to an Energy Ireland conference. I made the point that for me the issue of clear air and air quality is crucial. Deputy Kelly is right to say the coal ban is a crucial part of this.

I am keen to demonstrate my commitment. The renewable heat incentive scheme discussion document was published some weeks ago. I have specifically included in the document provisions relating to dealing with issues of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides. The provisions probably would not have been part of the document had the environment division not come to our Department. I am committed to seeing progress made.

Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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I look forward to the Minister's announcement. It will have to be in the coming days to meet those timelines.