Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 37: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will provide a breakdown of the way in which the €6.9 million allocated to the Environmental Research, Technological Development and Innovation Programme, funded under the National Development Plan 2000 to 2006 is being spent; his further plans to provide funding for climate change research; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13467/07]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Environmental Research, Technological Development and Innovation programme (ERTDI) is administered by the Environmental Protection Agency with funding provided by my Department from the Environment Fund. Cumulative expenditure by the Agency at the end of the 2000 — 2006 period amounted to €39.76 million.

The ERTDI consists of four sub-measures, namely:

Sub-measure 1 — Environmentally Sustainable Resources Management

Sub-measure 2 — Sustainable Development

Sub-measure 3 -Cleaner Production

Sub-measure 4 — National Environmental Research Centre of Excellence.

Under the ERTDI 2000 — 2006, a total of 466 projects have been grant awarded with a breakdown as follows: 256 projects in sub-measure 1; 84 projects in sub-measure 2; 100 projects in sub-measure 3; and 26 projects in sub-measure 4.

In addition to the funding provided by the ERTDI, my Department has committed Exchequer funding of €8 million over the 2007 — 2008 period for research into a range of projects related to climate change. This funding is being provided under the public sector research initiative established under the Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation 2006 — 2013.