Results 1-20 of 22 for peat speaker:Marcella Corcoran Kennedy

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Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Supporting a Just Transition: Discussion (Resumed) (18 Dec 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...so there is opportunity. One thing we can welcome is the fact Bord na Móna has decided to diversify rather than just shut up shop, which it could easily do because its main function was to harvest peat for energy generation. When its main client, the ESB, is gone, the question is what it is going to do, so I welcome very much the fact it is looking at new business. I would, of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Supporting a Just Transition: Discussion (Resumed) (20 Nov 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...a very important person and everybody should be talking to him. Could the witnesses give some examples to show why the Spanish model is working so well? Unfortunately, our withdrawal from using peat for energy generation has been accelerated by An Bord Pleanála's decision not to grant planning permission to the ESB to generate electricity post-2020 using biomass or peat. This...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Power Plant Closures (12 Nov 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...to co-fire the West Offaly and Lough Ree power plants will have far-reaching repercussions, first, for its own workers and, second, for Bord na Móna workers who will no longer be needed to harvest peat to supply the ESB after 2020. The impacts on them, local businesses, communities and the local authority mean we will all have significant challenges to manage. This day was...

Early Exit from Peat for Electricity Generation: Statements (6 Nov 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...generation to the economy of the area, not only for employment but to generate electricity. As children, all of us were very aware of that growing up. One third of our land mass is comprised of peat so it is no surprise that, for generations, peat harvesting was crucial to the area. We were fortunate enough not to experience emigration at a time when others regions did. The...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Peatlands Restoration and Rehabilitation: Discussion (23 Oct 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...xf3;na and the potential for it to maintain its workforce through retraining and accessing the tender. Has this happened in the past or could it happen in the future? I welcome the review of the use of peat in the horticulture industry because we are very keen on a just transition for everybody involved. A number of companies are using their own boglands for horticulture. I welcome...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Change Advisory Council Annual Review 2019: Discussion (16 Oct 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: I thank Professor FitzGerald for his presentation. Speaking as someone from Offaly in the midlands, where a third of our county is peat soil and has been used for harvesting turf for electricity generation for decades, the future of the peatlands is at the forefront of my mind. A certain amount of the boglands is being rehabilitated and restored by the National Parks and Wildlife Service....

Financial Resolutions 2019 - Financial Resolution No. 9: General (Resumed) (10 Oct 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...my Government colleagues recognised the uniquely challenging impact of the country's decarbonisation transition on Offaly in the context of Bord na Móna's transition away from the harvesting of peat in order to generate power for the ESB. I have had intense discussions with the Taoiseach, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, and the Minister of Communications, Climate Action and...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Energy Production (17 Sep 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...has been a part of the fabric of life for decades since the establishment of Bord na Móna and the building of the ESB power stations across the county. One third of our land mass comprises peat so it is no surprise that peat harvesting for energy generation was focused there. Offaly experienced less emigration than many other counties in the 1950s due to the number of jobs available...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: European Commission Strategy on Climate Action: Discussion (16 May 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...and I wish them céad míle fáilte. The committee recently presented its climate action report to the Minister, Deputy Bruton, and the Dáil. We were very conscious of a just transition for our peat industry when we were considering that report and yet our Government has had to commit to not using peat for energy generation after 2028. We have three power stations, two...

Report of Joint Committee on Climate Action: Motion (9 May 2019)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...achieved. In my county of Offaly Bord na Mona was for many decades a significant employer, with the ESB. Bord na Mona made significant decisions on restructuring as a result of the lack of demand for the peat it produced as the ESB no longer required it. In County Offaly, in particular, it is a very difficult time for workers, communities and the company as we are impacted on the most....

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (19 Dec 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ..., Planning, and Local Government if he will report on the potential impact of the High Court ruling by a person (details supplied) of 7 December 2018 regarding the requirement of all commercial peat harvesting companies to apply for planning permission; his plans to introduce amending legislation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53767/18]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Local Improvement Scheme Data (11 Dec 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...Council is wasting no time in spending the funding allocation. Will he consider developing a specific scheme that will take into account the fact that much of the road network in Offaly is on peat, including many of private roads? With the advent of climate change and given the peat roads last for only five years, rather than the 20 years one might expect, will he consider a specific...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (Resumed) (4 Dec 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...people who could be further upskilled who could be part of that and it might be a great opportunity for them. Have the unions had any further thoughts on the brown to green policy to replace peat with biomass energy? Are there other opportunities for workers in this regard? Did the unions engage in the public consultation on the national mitigation plan produced last year? It will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (Resumed) (4 Dec 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: I also asked about Bord na Móna's brown to green policy of replacing peat with biomass.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...must take it into consideration. Should methane be added to the emissions trading system? Are there examples of methane sequestration available? As much as 20% of the land in Ireland is covered in peat. Is there a potential for using peatlands for sequestration and as a carbon sink? Do the witnesses have a calculation on the re-wetting of bogs and whether it is successful? ...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Climate Change Advisory Council (12 Sep 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...for Coillte because although it has some broadleaf it primarily has coniferous plantations. Bord na Móna was mentioned earlier. There is a significant shift in its strategic plans around moving away from peat. Being from County Offaly I am familiar with this and with the challenges that exist in terms of communities transitioning and coping with the massive loss of employment that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (5 Sep 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...that they might become parks that we could all enjoy? Bord na Móna is doing a considerable amount of work in Lough Boora in my electoral area in Offaly and in other places. It is moving away from the harvesting of peat and we could consider planting forestry on those lands. In areas that Coillte has harvested, it could consider planting broadleaf trees. I am interested in a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: EU Regulations (22 Feb 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: 235. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the estimated impact a High Court ruling of 8 February 2018 (details supplied) will have on the harvesting of peat here; his plans to introduce the promised amending legislation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9194/18]

Topical Issue Debate: Roads Maintenance Funding (23 Jan 2018)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...to attract enterprise and increased tourism activity to the county, the road network urgently requires additional investment that recognises the very specific nature of the network, which is built on peat foundations. I am very concerned by the situation. Engineers accept that road surfaces built on peat foundations require significantly more investment to ensure standards are...

Topical Issue Debate: Road Improvement Schemes (14 Nov 2017)

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy: ...project in light of his recent visit to the area. I remind him, in the context of the specific improvement grants he mentioned in his response, that many roads in west and east Offaly are built on peat foundations. According to the guidelines on the rehabilitation of roads over peat, such roads require works to be carried out on them four to five times more often than roads that are not...