Nessa Cosgrove (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State.

In 2021, Ireland banned the importation of fracked gas. The Cabinet decision on Monday, 3 March to procure a State-owned liquified natural gas, LNG, terminal coupled with the granting of planning permission by An Bord Pleanála last week for a 600 MW gas-powered power station indicates a reversal of this policy. Conventional natural gas is damaging to the environment. LNG or as we know it, fracked gas, is particularly and immediately damaging to the local environment. It is known around the world that fracking leads to the contamination of drinking and ground water by both the fracking chemicals and escaping gas. It has been linked to earthquakes, including at least one in Lancashire that contributed to the UK's Government decision to ban fracked gas in 2019. There are communities in parts of the US where fracking is allowed, such as Pennsylvania. This is a high-profile issue. Much higher instances of devastating diseases, such as childhood leukemia, lymphoma, heart, skin and respiratory issues, have been verified. Thanks in part of the tireless work of Country Leitrim-based campaigners and former Fine Gael Sligo-Leitrim TD, Tony McLoughlin, a ban on exploration for the fracking of gas on the Irish land on inshore waters was introduced in 2017.

The 2020 programme for Government, Our Shared Future, stated: "As Ireland moves towards carbon neutrality we do not believe that it makes sense to develop an LNG - gas import terminals importing fracked gas." A moratorium on the construction of any LNG infrastructure followed in 2021 and when the Planning and Development Act made its way through the Oireachtas last year, the Government repeatedly assured us that there were no plans to import fracked gas. In a Dáil debate on 15 October 2024, only less than six months ago, previous environment Minister, Deputy Ryan, said: "The Government policy has not changed ... the Government does not support the importation of fracked gas ... the Government does not support the commercial import of LNG as the development of the infrastructure for the commercial import of LNG would be inconsistent with the decarbonisation strategy". He went on to say that Ireland's natural gas supply and infrastructure were adequate. He also recognised that a terminal for LNG would theoretically be filled with non-fracked gas. He said there was no Trojan horse. It is not feasible, however, to expect shipments of LNG to not contain fracked gas. What other threats are concealed inside this particular Trojan horse? The two previous Governments from 2016 to 2024, both of which included Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, either directly or through confidence and supply, have clearly directed the State away from the increased use of fossil fuels and emphatically rejected the use of LNG obtained through fracking. This has appeared to have changed in recent weeks. The Minister for the environment brought a memorandum to Cabinet, which approved a plan to develop a State-led LNG terminal to be based at coastal location. This is quite near the Minister of State's own constituency. It was confirmed that the Minister believes that the legal position is that we cannot distinguish between fracked and non-fracked gas. If that is the case, is it not better to not accept any form of LNG? We cannot be part of a system that enriches fossil fuel exploitation co-operation at the expense of the health and lives of children in Pennsylvania.

The granting of planning permission to Shannon LNG for a 600 MW gas-fired power plant in County Kerry appears to confirm the Government's direction of travel. There is a meeting this afternoon in Buswells Hotel with many environmental groups at 12 p.m.. A total of 12 senior climate academics based in Irish universities wrote to the Taoiseach in February warning of the dangers of LNG. The Minister for the environment appears to be ignoring them and it seems that they are inconvenient voices. I would like the Minister of State to clearly state if in fact that the Government policy has changed towards the use of LNG, how this will impact on our commit to reduce our carbon footprint by 51% by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2050 and if we are to permit the importation of fracked gas, why has this policy changed. I also call for the release of all information, particularly any reports commissioned by the previous Minister, Deputy Ryan, relating to Ireland's future energy needs.