Fiona O'Malley (Progressive Democrats)

I am pleased to speak after Senator Hannigan as I can provide some statistics on what the Government has done. The Senator should not leave just yet as he will miss the reply. At the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security today, it was announced that there will be 3,000 MW of renewable energy from the third gate of the available schemes. This is a tangible example of what is being delivered. Unfortunately, the Senator has not waited to hear a response, which is sometimes the problem with debates in the House. People make inaccurate points, then ask questions about what is being done but will not wait to hear the answers, of which there are plenty. I could not wait to provide a reply to the Senator. Gate 1 produced 375 MW and gate 2 produced 1,300 MW. The targets are tangible and are not just national but European.

At a national level we have created more stringent targets. It is estimated that 4,500 MW will be needed to reach the target of 33% of power from renewable energy sources by 2020. If all gate 2 projects proceed, there will be 2,725 MW on the system. There are 7,000 MW in the queue. This is a real, tangible example of what is being delivered under the Government strategy. It is a nonsense and ridiculous to say it is all waffle and there is nothing happening. I wonder to what extent Senator Hannigan is aware of the current initiatives throughout the country, of which there are plenty.

Before I discuss bio-gas I wish to make some remarks on bio-fuels. The contribution of Senator Feargal Quinn on this matter seemed to be very negative, or perhaps wary is a more appropriate description. I understand there are global issues relating to pricing on this matter at present. I met a person this afternoon who mentioned an interesting statistic. We should not have a knee-jerk reaction to bio-fuels. This person said if there is a 1% decrease in the global availability of maize, it has an impact on the price of more than 100%. A 1% reduction in the availability of maize is modest in a global sense, but the impact on the price of the maize is phenomenal and completely out of proportion.

This is what we are responding to at present and one can be sure the producers of maize, wheat and corn throughout the world will change their practices because of the fluctuation in market prices. This is not a stable situation and we cannot decide future policy in this area based on that. It is necessary for matters to settle somewhat. This statistic brings a sense of proportion to the whole subject. At the committee meeting this afternoon there was a discussion on developing an indigenous bio-fuel industry in Ireland. We must be careful how we proceed to ensure we develop a sustainable bio-fuels market. For this reason I am especially interested in the options for bio-gas.

I was pleased to learn Sustainable Energy Ireland has invested research and development funding in this area. I intend to spend time in the coming month travelling throughout the country examining what are deemed model sites dealing with anaerobic digestion, treating animal waste and so on. Through bio-gas in the broad sense of the term we can solve several problems, including those created by the meat rendering industry. At present we export a good deal of rendered meat at great expense, whereas we could be generating fuel for cars or heating systems.

In this respect travel broadens the mind. On a recent trip of the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security to Stockholm we met many people and businesses providing novelty in this area. Ireland could do much work in this regard and could receive help to reach energy independence. This is the aim of Government policy — to decrease the high dependence on fossil fuels. It takes a small degree of innovation. The person I spoke to this afternoon indicated that one simple measure, such as the provision of excise relief for bio-gas, would open doors and allow producers and investors the necessary security — it is a risky business — and encouragement to invest. I intend to carry out a good deal of research during the summer months in this area and I will revert to the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and the Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security with my findings.

Much progress has been made in the area of building regulations and housing standards. I very much wish the Government would commit to the idea of a zero carbon house. The UK Government has made such a decision and I have spoken on this matter previously. All housing can be built in this way. This UK Government has committed to providing zero carbon new houses by 2016. I believe we should follow suit, as this is what we need to do. If our building regulations were updated, it would be a possibility here too and I encourage the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to consider it. I recognise, having just considerably amended the building regulations, the Government may decide it is rather onerous to create an additional burden. However we have targets we must meet, and there are many penalties if we do not. I hope the Minister considers the long-term view which includes good, sustainable housing for communities in the future.