Niall Ó Brolcháin (Green Party)

Having said that, the final target of 80% by 2050 is consistent in both Bills and will be achieved.

I have a background in business and systems analysis, an area in which targets are always set. It is extraordinary to hear targets discussed in what appears to be an uneducated manner. One cannot achieve a target without first setting it. If one is trying to achieve something, it is vital first to have a target. This does not mean one is bound by the target and it is clear targets may be changed if it is necessary to do so. Future Governments will change the targets in the Bill. One need only consider the various finance Bills that have come before the House. How many of our financial projections and targets have been achieved recently? While I do not know if the targets laid down in the legislation will be achieved, I hope they will be exceeded.

If we trash the Bill, we will miss a major economic opportunity. Various international figures, including the United Nations Secretary General and President Obama, speak about a green new deal. The green new deal is an opportunity to address both of the world's major problems, namely, its current economic difficulties and the problem of climate change. On the latter issue, I have asked people many times which part of the American Continent is on the same line of latitude as Ireland. Most people believe that if one were to follow a line of latitude from Ireland to North America one would arrive in New York. In fact, one would arrive in Labrador, an area of permafrost with little agriculture. I would not like Ireland to end up having a similar climate. The climate change models put forward in the 1990s, which are now coming to pass, showed there would be an extreme reduction in the temperatures of the northern hemisphere as a result of the pressure of the melting polar ice caps and the pressure on the North Atlantic current. I was sitting in temperatures of -10°C in Galway while others sat in temperatures of -18°C. This is unprecedented. Climate change is happening before our eyes. Either we take it seriously or we do not. If we are to take it seriously, the way forward is to become a world leader.

I refer to the agricultural sector. Various enzymes are being developed to allow cows to emit less methane. We have a fantastic pharmaceutical industry and a fantastic agricultural industry. Why not combine the two to ensure we can become world leaders in enzymes that will ensure less pollution from cows? We can produce and export those enzymes.

What about anaerobic digestion? I spoke earlier about red tape. The number of Departments involved in anaerobic digestion is extraordinary. In Germany, 30% of renewable energy is produced through biogas. While it is not quite possible to do that in Ireland, we produce zero biogas at present. We can make a lot of money out of this if we examine it properly and we can reduce pollution. People quite often miss the point when they talk about climate change and the Kyoto Protocol. Some people are talking about the right to pollute. People do not have the right to pollute in a way that leaves the world in a worse state. We should not allow our children to inherit a world less habitable than the world we have. In the past it has been destroyed for the sake of a few quid in the short term.

A Senator referred to Easter Island. I do not want Ireland to lose its agricultural potential. I do not want Ireland to lose its potential as an inhabitable, decent and green country. I want to see Ireland as a better place that is leading the way in the world, not a country prepared to allow a few vested interests to pollute more than others and make a few quid out of it. That mentality is regrettable.

I have talked to the IFA, as have many members of the Green Party. The IFA does not want to pollute and has no interest in it. It wants to work with us to achieve the targets. Targets have been outlined by the Minister of State, Deputy Ciarán Cuffe, to the IFA but they can be changed if necessary. It is not all about the IFA targets. We have a great opportunity to reduce our emissions through bringing in renewable energy quickly. The number of wind farms in Ireland is not high enough. We need to think big in the area of renewable energy and non-polluting energy. All of these matters can be put together in order that we have a better and world-leading economy that will drive out of the recession with the green new deal. I give credit to Fine Gael's NewERA document. I wonder whether it contradicts what some are saying in this Chamber.