Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach for inviting me to this session to present the 2020 Annual Transition Statement. I am pleased to have the opportunity today to update the House on this matter.

Climate change is one of the key challenges of this century and failure to address it effectively will result in major adverse impacts that will affect all countries. The latest climate science has observed unprecedented changes in the climate system. The challenges we face are stark. Only recently, the World Meteorological Organization published a report showing that four key climate indicators - greenhouse gas concentration, sea level rises, ocean heat and ocean acidification - all broke records in 2021. This is another clear sign we are observing planetary scale changes, caused by human activities, that are harming our land, seas and atmosphere.

I am pleased to present this annual transition statement as provided for under section 14(1) of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015. This is the fifth annual transition statement, and it is being presented to both Houses in line with the requirements of the 2015 Act. The statement includes an overview of Ireland's climate change mitigation and adaptation policy measures, including specific updates for the various sectors designated in the 2015 Act. The 2020 Annual Transition Statement also sets out a record of greenhouse gas emissions from the most recent inventory prepared by the Environmental Protection Agency and projections of future emissions, together with a report on the State's compliance with its obligations under EU law and international agreements.

While the 2020 Annual Transition Statement must predominately contain information in respect of 2019, it also records more recent policy developments in relation to climate mitigation and adaptation. This strengthened climate governance framework provided for under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 means annual transition statements are now replaced by climate action plans and long-term climate strategies, supported by a system of carbon budgeting and sectoral targets with appropriate oversight by Government, the Oireachtas and the Climate Change Advisory Council. Therefore, this will be the final annual transition statement.

To give a brief overview of the various development and policy measures adopted to mitigate and reduce emissions, I will highlight some of the key items included within the 2020 Annual Transition Statement. The above mentioned 2021 climate Act was signed into law in July 2021, setting Ireland on a legally binding path to net zero emissions not later than 2050, and to a 51% reduction in emissions, relative to 2018 levels, by the end of this decade. To deliver on the ambition set out in the Act, the Government published the Climate Action Plan 2021 last November. The plan includes policies and measures in every sector to bring about the significant changes needed to transform our society and to meet our climate ambition for 2030 and beyond.

The 2021 climate Act establishes a system of carbon budgeting as a key element of a strengthened legislative framework. In April, after an extensive consultation process, a programme of carbon budgets was approved by both Houses of the Oireachtas and thus came into effect. The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications is currently preparing the sectoral emissions ceilings for Government approval in the coming weeks. This process has included extensive engagement with all relevant Departments and agencies.

Carbon pricing is a key pillar of Ireland's overall decarbonisation strategy. The Climate Action Plan 2021 reiterates the Government's commitment to carbon pricing playing a key role in supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy. The 2020 Finance Act sets a statutory trajectory for carbon prices in Ireland, with these set to rase an additional €9.5 billion in revenue by 2030. This revenue is being allocated to programmes that support sustainability and those most vulnerable to rising costs. This includes €5 billion for energy efficient retrofits, €3 billion to address fuel poverty and a just transition, as well as €1.5 billion to promote sustainable agriculture practices.

In terms of the electricity generation sector, the 2020 Annual Transition Statement highlights progress made while also noting our increasing ambition, with a target of 80% of our energy to come from renewable sources by 2030. This fundamental shift will require major changes to the electricity generation mix, transmission and distribution grids alongside significant changes to our national demand profiles and storage capacity. The statement identifies measures adopted and progress made across a number of areas including via the renewable electricity support scheme, the enactment of the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021, ongoing work to develop a new offshore renewable energy development plan, and efforts to support microgeneration and small-scale solar. The 2020 statement also highlighted ongoing work to enhance our electricity interconnection and upgrade our electricity grid, with €4 billion allocated for capital investment over the period 2021 to 2025.

With regard to the enterprise sector, the statement notes that approximately 68% of enterprise emissions are accounted for under the EU's emissions trading system, ETS. Reforms to the ETS, such as those proposed in the 2019 European Green Deal, seek to ensure the ETS can effectively deliver reductions in emissions while addressing the challenges faced by sectors most exposed to international competition. The statement lists progress made in the sector through a number of the measures to meet our 2030 targets. These measures have included the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment engaging with representatives of the cement sector to identify opportunities for further introduction of alternative fuel sources, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland introducing strategies that focus on decarbonisation and sustainability, the launch of the ClimateToolKit4Business website, the extension of the accelerated capital allowance scheme for energy efficient equipment, and the introduction of the disruptive technologies innovation fund and the climate enterprise action fund. Furthermore, the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, continues to support the adoption of renewable heating systems by commercial and industrial heat users not covered by the ETS through the support scheme for renewable heat.

In our built environment, the statement provides updates on progress made to decarbonise our commercial buildings with a range of supports and funding. In addition, support was provided to our SMEs through the excellence in energy efficient design, EXEED, programme to provide energy savings and emissions reductions. Our public sector is looking to lead by example in increasing the energy efficiency of its activities and buildings with the public sector energy efficiency programme, led by the SEAI, providing comprehensive support and engagement to guide public bodies to achieve their energy efficiency targets. The annual statement also notes how the Climate Action Plan 2021 supports measures to develop our district heating potential and to ensure our retrofit ambitions align with the Housing for All strategy in areas such as compact growth, nearly zero energy buildings and retrofitting.

The 2020 Annual Transition Statement details how our transport sector is playing a significant role in the national mitigation effort. The decarbonisation pathway in transport is multilayered and will primarily focus on shifting to more sustainable transport modes, reducing the overall number of kilometres driven by fossil fuel-powered cars, accelerating the electrification of road transport, and an increased use of biofuels.A number of key public transport projects have been progressed to enhance and expand the capacity of the network and provide viable alternatives to private car travel. This includes 261 new buses delivered in 2021, with progress also made on delivering BusConnects in Dublin and Cork, as well as the launch of the National Transport Authority's Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan, which will seek to provide better connections between villages and towns through enhanced and new local routes.

A low-emission vehicle task force was established to accelerate the deployment of low-carbon transport technologies and a national electric vehicle charging infrastructure strategy is in development to prioritise the delivery of fast and rapid-charge point infrastructure over the next five years. Each local authority has been mandated to develop active travel routes that will improve the level of safety and attractiveness of using active travel modes in rural towns and villages. An additional 248 staff were allocated across the 31 local authorities and national roads offices to assist with the delivery of the significantly increased number of projects. The launch of the sustainable mobility policy in April set out the framework to deliver at least 500,000 additional daily active travel and public transport journeys by 2030 and a 10% reduction in the number of kilometres driven by fossil-fuelled cars.

The freight sector, which is critical to economic activity on an island economy, is heavily dependent on imported oil. The Department of Transport is developing a ten-year strategy for the haulage sector focused on improving efficiencies and standards and helping the sector move to a low-carbon future. In November 2021, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, published the Renewable Fuels for Transport Policy, which sets out the pathway for increasing the supply and use of renewable fuels in transport, including extending the biofuel obligation to 2024.

The 2020 annual transition statement highlights a number of developments in terms of how our agriculture and land use, land use change and forestry, LULUCF, sector is committing to reducing its emissions. The sector will also contribute by reducing land-based emissions through managing our soils in a better way. Food Vision, launched in August 2021, is a landmark for the Irish agrifood sector and has the potential to transform the agriculture, food, forestry and marine sectors, with sustainability at its core. The strategy is honest and upfront about the challenges ahead and, crucially, it proposes solutions and charts a pathway to sustainability in all its dimensions.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has overseen a number of programmes and initiatives to support the farming community in adopting and expanding sustainable practices. This has included collaboration with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on the nitrates action programme. The most recent iteration of this programme will seek to contribute to a number of measures, including reducing chemical nitrogen use, establishing a national fertiliser register, reducing crude protein content of livestock feed and upskilling farmers and advisers to ensure they have the knowledge and tools to implement climate mitigation, biodiversity enhancement and adaptation practices.

Other initiatives and programmes to support cost savings and more efficient and sustainable farming have included: the targeted agricultural modernisation scheme to support a range of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies at farm level; the young farmer capital investment scheme; the green, low-carbon, agri-environment scheme; and the agricultural catchments programme, which will significantly enhance the monitoring of impacts of agriculture on our environment. Further work is also ongoing on the promotion of protected urea fertilisers.

There has been significant improvement in grant and premium rates for the forestry for fibre scheme, which has been extended to the end of 2022. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is currently preparing a new forest strategy that will continue to take into account the important role forest biomass will play in climate change mitigation and adaptation. Furthermore, in 2020, €79.2 million of capital expenditure was invested in forestry development, including afforestation, the mobilisation of private timber resources, substantial investment in forest roads, continued support for knowledge transfer groups and the promotion of timber products.

The 2020 annual transition statement also highlights our ongoing work on climate adaptation to address current and future risks posed by a changing climate. Ireland’s robust adaptation strategies will also have positive co-benefits through fostering green growth, innovation, jobs, ecosystem enhancement and improvements in water and air quality. Ireland’s first statutory national adaptation framework represents Ireland's current national policy response to the challenges posed by the impacts of climate change. It identifies 12 key sectors requiring sectoral adaptation plans, and these plans were approved by the Government and published in October 2019. I will briefly mention some of these plans.

The agriculture, forest and seafood adaptation plan aims to reduce climate risk and build resilience through awareness-raising and integrating adaptation planning. Progress on implementation has been made both within the Department and externally. Work has continued to raise the profile of adaptation by aligning the mitigation and adaptation reporting processes together.

Actions within this biodiversity sectoral adaptation plan build on the foundations of the national biodiversity action plan. These actions are aimed at improving sustainable agriculture and fisheries, better soil and land management and, most urgently, the restoration of natural systems. This adaptation plan will be reviewed on an ongoing basis with oversight by the biodiversity working group and the Minister.

Climate change can also cause major infrastructural damage to transport networks, as well as disruptions to operations and unsafe travel conditions. The adaptation plan for transport infrastructure identifies key risks in the area and serves as a step towards building Ireland's long-term vision of a low-carbon, environmentally sustainable and resilient transport sector by 2050. The energy and gas networks adaptation plan seeks to identify options that will help build resilience against the impacts of climate change and in assessing our vulnerability to likely climate impacts on our electricity and gas networks.

As noted by the Climate Change Advisory Council annual review of 2021, good progress is being made in implementing the sectoral adaptation plan for flood risk management. The long-term goal for climate adaptation for flooding and flood risk management is to promote sustainable communities and support our environment through the effective management of the potential impacts of climate change.

The adaptation plan for the water quality and water services infrastructure presents an assessment of key future climate risks to the sectors. The plan outlines the measures available to build resilience against the effects of climate change and weather-related events and other socioeconomic developments in both sectors. Under the national adaptation framework, each local authority was required to make and adopt a local adaptation strategy. Whereas implementation of each strategy is a matter for each individual local authority, a progress reporting template was developed by the climate action regional offices to enable local authorities to report on their progress. The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications is currently working with the regional offices, the Environmental Protection Agency and other stakeholders to develop appropriate guidelines for the making of local authority climate action plans, which are required under the Climate Act 2021. Another key development noted in the 2020 annual report is Ireland’s climate information platform, Climate Ireland, being introduced on a phased basis under the EPA research programme as a "one-stop shop" of information, data and knowledge to support those preparing for and adapting to the consequences of climate change.

The 2020 annual transition statement refers to the EPA's provisional greenhouse gases emissions report for 2019, emissions and projections for 2020 to 2040. However, as there are now more up-to-date figures available, I will provide a brief overview of these. In November 2021, the EPA reported that for 2020, total emissions in Ireland were estimated to have declined by roughly 3.6% compared with 2019. This reduction was driven by a drop in the use of peat for electricity generation and Covid-19's impact on transport. In this period our energy sector saw an almost 8% reduction in emissions while transport fell by almost 16%. In the same period, agriculture emissions increased by 1.4% and emissions from the residential sector rose by 9%, highlighting the need for retrofitting to decarbonise home heating. This relatively small overall reduction, given the substantial impact Covid-19 has had on our society, further highlights the transformative nature of the measures required to meet our 2030 and 2050 targets.

In May of this year, the EPA released its emissions projections out to 2040. These projections estimate that in 2021, Ireland’s emissions rose by 6% compared with 2020, in some part driven by our emergence from Covid-19 and associated restrictions. The EPA also estimated that we were not on course to meet our 2030 targets, although its modelling could not fully factor in all actions and measures in our climate action plan, given further technical details are still to be developed.

We must consider how to accelerate the delivery of measures and actions that can not only reduce our emissions but also support new ways of conducting business and encouraging innovation. Achieving these targets will provide numerous benefits to the country in terms of health, competitiveness, employment opportunities, biodiversity and climate impact. To reverse the current trajectory of emissions and to meet our targets, a significant shift is required in the speed at which we roll out the measures and actions that will decarbonise our economy. As part of the process to deliver the next climate action plan, the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications will engage with other Departments and State agencies to identify opportunities for accelerating our climate action.

As a party to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC, Ireland is required to report regularly on its implementation of the convention, preparing and submitting a national communication every four years and a biennial report every two years. Ireland submitted its seventh national communication and third biennial report in March 2018. Ireland submitted its fourth biennial report in February 2020. We are currently preparing our eighth national communication for submission.

Ireland’s national reports are subject to an in-country technical review process and a multilateral assessment process. Ireland participated in multilateral assessments by the UNFCCC on its seventh national communication in Bonn in June 2019. The technical review of Ireland’s fourth biennial report took place virtually in April 2020 and multilateral assessment also took place virtually in June 2021.The transition to a carbon-neutral economy will provide huge opportunities to foster innovation, create new jobs and grow businesses in areas such as offshore wind, cutting-edge sustainable agriculture and low-carbon construction.

Finally, while we all must act together and work towards our climate objective, I realise that the costs of climate action will be more acutely felt by some than by others. As a Government, we are committed to protecting those most vulnerable and ensuring a just transition to a low-carbon economy. I thank Members for their time and welcome their comments.