James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The Government has failed to introduce a nationwide ban on smoky coal with negative effects in towns such as Enniscorthy, New Ross and Gorey in my native county. Professor John Sodeau stated this week that air pollution in my home town of Enniscorthy has reached an extremely dangerous level. There have been 12 breaches of Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, safety limits since Christmas. Some of these have reached ten times the EU safe limits. Asthma sufferers living in Enniscorthy, New Ross and Gorey have been warned to stay indoors during these times. That is totally unacceptable.

People with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD, asthma and other lung problems cannot get the supports they need. Yet, here is a simple solution to help those people by giving them safe air to breathe. Some 80% of the population is covered by the smoky coal ban but 20% is not. Why are those 20% of the people being treated differently from the rest of the nation? For the other 80% the ban has existed in some places for almost 30 years. However, the Government has taken fright because I understand one coal importer has threatened legal action. I am sure there has not been a regulation in the history of the State that a Government sought to introduce where there was not a threat of some form or legal action. For the Government to be seen to bow to that kind of legal pressure is only to invite further legal pressure on every other regulation the State proposes to introduce.

I was always taught that the primary role of the State is to protect its people. In this case the State is showing cowardice in the face of a legal threat and is not protecting the people. More pertinently, it is not protecting the 20% who are forced to live in unsafe air conditions. I do not like having to bring up negative things about my home town or other towns in my native county, but this is dangerous and unacceptable, and something needs to be done.

Frank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy.

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The power is in the Minister's hands. I do not want to wishy-washy nonsense about the local authority having the power. The 1987 legislation makes it clear that the power lies with the Minister.

Frank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy.

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The powers given to the local authorities are minimal and it is very onerous for them to take action.

Frank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will have the opportunity to ask a supplementary question.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Air pollution is perceived as the second biggest environmental concern for Europeans after climate change, according to the European Commission. Ten times more people are killed by air pollution than by road accidents in the EU. The UN has stated that the failure of governments across the world to ensure their citizens breathe clean air is a violation of the rights to life, health and well-being. The Clean Air Alliance has claimed that four people in Ireland die every day from the effects of air pollution. Some 1,150 premature deaths in Ireland are attributable to air pollution.

Yesterday, the Minister advised that up to 6 June, there had been 98 breaches of the daily air pollution limits recorded in the State. Sixty five of those were in Dublin, including four in Blanchardstown, two in the Phoenix Park and 12 in Ringsend. There were also 11 in Enniscorthy. There were even more in places like Davitt Road and other heavy industrialised areas.

Air pollution is a major cause of premature death and disease, and is the single largest environmental health risk in Europe, causing approximately 400,000 premature deaths per year. The report published in 2018, using data for 2015 indicates 1,150 premature deaths in Ireland. Heart disease and stroke are the commonest reasons for premature death attributable to air pollution. Air pollution leads to reduced lung function, respiratory infections and aggravated asthma, particularly in children. The current rental crisis is adding to the asthma crisis because of mould and bacteria in poor rental accommodation. Recent evidence suggests the central nervous system is also affected.

What does the Government propose to do about it? I do not want a 340 or 640-item list of things it plans to do out to 2040. I want to see action in the here and now that relieves people, in particular children, who are suffering. Air pollution and climate change are intertwined. Several air pollutants are also climate forcers, which have a potential impact on climate and global warming in the short term. Air pollution and climate change should be tackled jointly using policies and measures that have been developed through an integrated approach.

I am concerned that the Government is all talk and almost no action in tackling what it is killing Irish people, including children.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputies for raising this very important issue. Undoubtedly Ireland faces challenges regarding ambient air pollution, which is pollution at particular places at particular times in respect of particular substances. The most serious problem we have is with particulate matter, particularly in smaller towns such as Enniscorthy, as adverted to by Deputy Browne.

Both my predecessors gave a commitment to extend the smoky coal ban, as it is known, to the remaining parts of the country. A number of coal firms indicated that they would legally challenge this decision by the two former Ministers and not only challenge the extension of the ban but also the existing ban.

I am not in any way taking fright in respect of this. I have taken careful counsel from the Attorney General. His advice is that I need to take heed of this challenge and that what is occurring could jeopardise not only the extension but also the ban already in place. I am taking care to consult the Attorney General so we can bring forward robust measures to deal with this.

As the Deputy knows, the nub of the issue is that the existing bans include smoky coal but exclude wood and peat. In the evaluation of particulate matter, which is the core pollutant we are concerned about, there is little or no difference between those two types of products. Therefore, we need to consider how to deal with this proposal. I am fully committed to having a clean air strategy and developing robust proposals to deal with this.

On the second issue raised by Deputy Burton, namely, breaches concerning particulate matter, this is a matter of significant concern. This year, there have been two trans-boundary air pollution events that affected our air quality. Pollutants from other countries were carried into Ireland. There was one event in February and a more significant one over the Easter weekend. These events have contributed to numerous breaches at several of the stations. However, our background level of pollutants is too high. This is underscored by the fact that I am extending, through the EPA, the air-quality monitoring network. We need to improve our performance.

We have significant commitments on all the key pollutants: sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, non-methane volatile organic compounds, ammonia and particulate matter. We will meet four of the targets we have set for 2020. Ammonia remains a problem and we need to address it. Challenges will be faced in the other areas as economic activity grows. We have currently out for consultation a national air pollution control programme. This is to identify the measures and programmes that will deliver on the reduction targets.

It is not true that no action is being taken in respect of this. Besides considering the issue of a ban on particular fuels, we are taking consistent and determined action to improve the position on pollutants coming from the transport and home heating sectors. I refer to very significant reductions in emissions standards for motor vehicles, the promotion of electric vehicles, the promotion of retrofitting and improvement of heating systems. The climate action plan will represent a significant stepping up of ambition in these areas. I accept the Deputy's point that we have a problem. I am determined to find a way to bring about an effective improvement in respect of particulate matter from home heating fuels. I am working with the Attorney General to find a solution.

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The recorded breaches relate to fine particles in the air. It has been stated by the professor that these comprise the most dangerous forms of air pollution because their microscopic size allows them to enter the bloodstream and get trapped in the lungs, resulting in respiratory and cardiac issues. We are also aware that these particles can be carcinogenic. They result in up to 1,500 deaths per year nationally. How many deaths are in the 20% of towns not covered by the State's smoky coal ban? The importers say that if the Government extends the ban to the final 20%, they will take legal action against the whole lot. Their motivation is money and nothing else. It is pure greed. It is a threat to the health of the State and people. The primary role of the Minister is to protect the people of the country, not bow to the kind of pressure in question.

A question must be asked about how serious the importers are. Why have they not taken legal action in the past 30 years? Surely if it were financially viable for them to threaten the State with action in the High Court, European Court of Justice or other court, they would do so. What the coal importers are threatening is despicable. I am not referring to all of them but to one or two. For the State to bow in the face of the threats is unacceptable and outrageous. The Minister is treating 20% of the population as second-class citizens in terms of their health. It is a most serious issue.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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What we really want is a clean air strategy to set out bold steps on cleaning up our air. We know what will work in towns like Enniscorthy. Smoky coal should be banned. In addition, trees, hedges and ivy should be planted. All the European and UK research, which is very advanced, has shown that all of these, even in very polluted locations in towns and cities, have a massive improving effect on air quality. The amount of disease caused by dirty air should be mapped out. The Minister should state the steps we are taking to end this.

The HSE is well over budget, as we know. The Government has lost control of the budget of the HSE. Why not act to have clean air in this country and reduce the incidence of all the diseases and conditions that dirty air is causing in adults and children?

The Government should pledge to go green. We should green our towns and villages and grow back our hedgerows. The latter are being ripped out all over the country under the Government's agricultural policy. We know the steps we can take to alter this. They are not incredibly expensive at all. In fact, over a period of five to seven years, I have no doubt that they would save the State a considerable amount. One should think back to Ms Mary Harney and the ban on smoky coal in Dublin. That was a single action. I urge the current Minister to have courage and take on the coal firms, which are polluting so many towns. One has only to stand on the hill outside Enniscorthy on a bad day to see the pall of smoke sitting over the town. That should not be in this day and age. Maybe the Minister should just visit the town himself.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I explained in my earlier comments the precise source of the problem. It is not just smoky coal because it is also peat and wood. I fully acknowledge that scientific evidence has strengthened concern over air pollution from particulate matter, in particular. The House would not thank me if I came forward with regulations that collapsed and were not robust. The Deputies would regard it as prudent for me to seek to have proposals that are robust and stand up to legal challenge. I would not be doing any service to the people of Enniscorthy or anywhere else if I did not do that. It is with this in mind that I am taking care to ensure that what I do is robust and effective.

We have made significant progress on air quality. We will meet the targets to reduce sulphur dioxide by 65%, nitrogen oxide by 49%, non-methane volatile organic compounds by 25%, and particulate matter by 18%. We will meet the targets set but I fully recognise that we have to do a lot better and introduce measures for the ambitions we have for the next decade.