Tim Lombard (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the Chamber. He is becoming a regular visitor to this Chamber. He has been here twice in 24 hours. It is an important step and an important statement that the Minister has made today.

I do not know if it will be the process from now on but it is the first time that we have had annual transition statements made to the Seanad. It is an important step forward for information on exactly where our policies will be going in this very important issue of climate change. It has been stated here today that dealing with climate change will be the dilemma of this generation. This generation has a responsibility to deal with climate change because, unfortunately, if we are unsuccessful and do not deliver, the following generations will be grossly affected.

There is movement on this issue. Trying to achieve targets, whether those in the Paris Agreement or other agreements, will become the major challenge. There was a recession and negative growth. In some regard, that helped us but we have turned a corner and growth has picked up. One can see it on the motorways and roads. We have seen an increase in transport. How we deal with that and a growing economy while staying within those targets will be one of the key issues facing this generation and also this Government.

When one looks at the generational side of things, usage is down 2% nationally even though we are in a growth phase at the moment. That is because we have changed our approach, building habits and guidelines have changed which should be welcomed. If we are to have a real, meaningful change, we have to look at things like micro-generation and where the solar industry will fit into that. We need to put forward a plan regarding the micro-generation element of the solar industry. The Minister said he would bring forward or review guidelines regarding wind farms.

At the moment one of the key issues seems to be solar farms and the lack of planning guidelines in that regard. It is an issue I have raised in the Seanad and the Minister of State, Deputy Damien English, responded that the Government has no plans at the moment to bring forward those guidelines. It is one of the key issues we need to look at.

In my part of the world we have had a spate of speculative planning permissions being lodged for quite extensive solar farms up to 50 or 60 acres. One of the criteria is how close the farms are to the substation. The criteria do not refer to where solar farms should be but to where the connection points to the grid are. It is an issue.

Community involvement and community payback have to be a major part of these things. When one sees what happened in other planning permissions, community involvement regarding a levy for the community needs to be looked at in these planning permissions in future. We have seen issues regarding the peat and coal generation plans and the proposals that most will be phased out over the next decade. That is the very important element. These are located in rural Ireland and not in major urban centres.How we keep employment with this change in processes will be a key issue for us so as to ensure we can move forward. In one way we must reach our targets but in another we must not decimate the communities left behind when these peat and coal plants close.

The Minister touched on the very important issue of food waste. This is one of the key issues in every household and it affects everybody in the State. How we manage and deal with such waste is a significant matter. This will come down to education and changing habits. I see waste even in my household and going around the community so this is about how to manage that waste. There must be education as to whether food should be thrown out by the date indicated on packaging or whether one can use it two or three days afterwards. We need an advertising programme on this so people can become more involved. Key people in the food industry must become ambassadors for the issue. We can see the amount of food waste that is normal, whether it is from a restaurant or household, so the issue affects everybody on the island. We need ambassadors to champion the cause of reducing food waste, and this will be a real challenge. It will be a key factor in the climate change strategy to know how we can tie a reduction in food waste to the fabric of society.

The growth of the agricultural industry and how it will affect climate change has been alluded to in this debate. It is one of the key concerns out there, covering areas like the nitrates directive and how the review in the next 12 months will affect water pollution, to how we will deal with gases. When we consider where we are going, there is an aura of insecurity that must be balanced. The next few months and years will be very important.

The Minister might clarify the negotiations happening in Europe on the 2030 proposals. We are halfway through them but have those agricultural issues come up? How does the Minister intend to deal with that. They are vital for the island and the security for those issues is very important.