Results 2,801-2,820 of 23,950 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The way it is measured and the science around how we undertake any carbon sequestration always have to be backed up robustly. We are investing a great deal right now. I outlined the research that Teagasc was doing via the 30 flux towers around the country. I have established the soil carbon observatory and funded it for Teagasc. Teagasc’s key role in this is to keep learning and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We must continually look at this year on year. That is why the climate action plan and the annual plans that each Department and Minister must put together are reviewed, looked at and updated annually. That is why we have this process as well in terms of engagement and accountability. It is something we have to look at on an ongoing basis. Things are evolving rapidly. I gave the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It was about 15% last year and, potentially, 17% this year but we have not reached the end of the year yet. There has roughly been a 30% reduction compared with a couple of years ago.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: No, it is not. The poorest performing output in terms of beef and profitability is the high-fertiliser one-sward yield. The next best performing is the clover sward and the highest performing animals are on the multispecies sward. Looking at the amount of dry matter grass that is being grown, it is similar. The highest amount of dry matter grass is coming from the multispecies sward....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is very good. This is research that my Department has paid for and it is UCD that is doing that. Teagasc likewise has been doing similar trials. All of this research is emerging now but what happens then is that Teagasc, through what we are funding and supporting, takes that research and works with signpost farms spread across the country to get farmers to apply that research and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The Deputy is right. The more we can bring this to the local level and have collaboration within the sector and across the different layers in the sector, the more progress we will make. We have been looking to do that as regards applying the knowledge. For example, we have the Teagasc signpost farms where they have developed that network over the last two or three years across the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We are engaging across government on the issue. We delayed announcing sectoral ceilings for LULUCF because much of the data is emerging and it is not clear. There are still gaps. The land use review is ongoing. It is moving to phase 2. That will be important in informing the review too. We are continuing to engage at Government level to decide when we do that. We have to make sure we...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The land use review will be important because it is gathering much of the data. That is still moving on.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is a decision still to be made by the Government. There is active engagement on it but it is a decision we still have to make.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The Deputy is referring to forestry on drained peatlands.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Our new forestry programme has made changes regarding where trees can be planted. Anything with a peat depth of more than 30 cm is excluded from our current forestry programme. Many areas which would have traditionally been forested many decades ago are no longer eligible because our understanding from the research and evidence about the contribution to emissions reductions has...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Yes, it does.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is right.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The objective is to do this quickly and to back people in their ambition. Some 46,000 farmers applied for ACRES this year. We secured places for everyone who applied and was successful. They were accepted into it. That is the first time that happened. As part of the-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: There are 46,000 currently in it. All 46,000 who applied were accepted. They applied at the end of last year and this is the first full year for that 46,000. It is currently open and due to close in just over a week for tranche 2. Within the CAP strategic plan, there is a funding allocation over five years to be able to facilitate a total of 50,000. That CAP strategic plan has many other...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The Deputy is right that it makes sense to have all this joined up. That is why we have been working and finalising the strategy for anaerobic digestion. It is pretty much finished. The final engagement is happening across the Departments. We hope to publish it in the very near future. That looks at the different aspects of it. The Deputy is right that the feedstock needs to be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is pretty much all family farms in this country. There are very few big farms.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan Review: Discussion (Resumed) (30 Nov 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We have negligible big farms. It is a family farm model. It is not like other countries. The average farm size in the country is 32 ha. The average number of dairy cows per farm is 85. Farm sizes in beef and sheep are much smaller. Our system is very different from those in other countries in Europe and across the Irish Sea, where there are much larger farms. It is not the case that the...