Results 1-20 of 52 for at segment:8537501

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I welcome the Minister. The committee understands the challenges of reaching the 25% emissions reduction target. Originally, the understanding was that 18% was suggested as a target through the measures outlined in Ag Climatise and different roadmaps. The target is now 25%, which we know will be challenging. At least agriculture has a roadmap in place and something to work from. Not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: Perfect. I respect the Deputy’s acknowledgement of the ongoing work. He played a massive role in setting this course when he was Minister responsible for our initial climate action plan and putting in place metrics as to how that would be monitored. On the biodigestion and anaerobic digestion, our target is that by 2030, 10% of all of our national gas requirement will be produced...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Richard Bruton: Turning to wider interests, how far has the Department progressed in putting together a circular strategy for the whole food sector that would look at food waste, packaging and all of the other elements? It is a commitment in the Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act. Where is the Department on carbon farming? That is the most significant way of creating an income stream for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: On the circular economy and minimising waste, we have the Food Vision 2030 strategy, which sets out an overview of that. I will come back to the Deputy specifically with an update on his question. On carbon farming, we see great potential. At the moment, at European level, we do not have capacity to do carbon farming or have payment specifically for it. There is not a European-wide...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It certainly would. We have to make sure farmers and the work they are doing are at the centre of that income stream as well. On the land use strategy, we just completely part 1 of the land use strategy and we are now commencing the second part of it. We have much more assessment to do as well in fully quantifying what is happening in our land. That is the whole objective behind the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I cannot give an answer to that question because technological innovation and work on this are happening at the moment. Ideally we would like to see it explore the potential for slow release feed boluses to be able to work in grazing situations, where it is not necessarily-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Timmy Dooley: I want to focus my attention on a couple of issues. I thank the Minister for what he has done on expanding the scale of the ACRE scheme to allow all farmers, some 46,000 of them who sought to be part of it, to participate versus the initial budgeted position of about 30,000. That is welcome to farmers who want to farm sustainably, raise their families and have a meaningful impact and live...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: The Senator is aware I set up the beef and sheep food division group, as well as the dairy food division group. One of the recommendations of the dairy food division group was that we should explore and look to take forward the option of a voluntary dairy reduction scheme. Our target is to have that clarified by the end of this year. I indicated a month or so ago that 2022 would be a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Pauline O'Reilly: While we are on that topic, the conversion of 5 ha of semi-natural land to agricultural land also does not need permission at the moment. Is this also being reviewed?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: There are about 250 people in the space. In terms of climate scientists, I do not have the exact figure to hand but I can get it for Deputy Cronin. The Deputy said the Government's approach is to keep calm and carry on. We will certainly keep calm but we will get on with the work, contrary to the Sinn Féin approach, which is very much keep the head down and hope nobody notices. If...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: At least the Deputy is finding-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Réada Cronin: This has not happened at any other time, or at any other committee meeting we have had.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: It is fair to draw a contrast. Deputy Cronin referred to holding two positions at the one time, and that is a fair reflection.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: What we want to do is to provide a suite of options, which are comprehensive and address different needs. If the Deputy looks at the agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, and the various measures in place there, whether it is a riparian zone, low-input, permanent pasture, which is scored now and results-based or tree and hedge planting, there is a whole range of options in place...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: We are carrying out ongoing recruitment to meet our needs. It is a big priority for the Department to make sure we are operating at full capacity in this space. On the various professions needed for that, we are recruiting ecologists, as one example. On the forestry programme, there is very significant and ongoing recruitment there, and likewise, where it is needed across the Department too.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: ...Minister for coming in today. It is really worthwhile having him in as there are a lot of questions we could ask and engage on. I would like to focus on the issue of controlled burning. The Climate Change Advisory Council was reported yesterday as saying that 1.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide are released annually in Ireland through wildfires and wildfire practices. Some of those...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I thank Deputy Whitmore. From 1 March to 1 September, burning is illegal. Outside of that window, it is possible to apply and get a permit for it. I will continue to assess all advice on this. Where controlled burning is taking place, there has to be an application to the local authority, and full engagement and co-operation. It has to be approved. The balance to be struck then is in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: I procured a report, which was published, on alternatives to burning. We have to look at all options, and ensure we are adopting the most appropriate one.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Alice-Mary Higgins: It will be good to get the figures for emissions from burning. I think they certainly should be reflected. It is clear that new measures are needed related to that. I am surprised that it did not seem to be addressed in the Food Vision 2030 report, not on dairy, but on beef and sheep. That would include addressing the use of uplands in this particular way. We know there are other...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (2 Mar 2023)

Charlie McConalogue: That is a broader policy question. Meat proteins and milk proteins are important parts of the human diet for good nutrition and will continue to be so. Looking at how we produce that and the expertise and natural capacity we have, we are world-leading with regard to the sustainability and quality of the product. That is why it is so sought after. We should continue to do that because it...