Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 345: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the gross amount of CO2 equivalent absorbed or exchanged by agriculture under land use, land use change and forestry in 2006. [10095/08]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 346: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the amount of emissions associated with nitrogen loss through leaching and nitrogen loss through ammonia volatilisation in the national inventory system. [10096/08]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 347: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will publish a detailed breakdown of the amount of CO2 equivalent produced in 2006 by each sector of agriculture as defined in the national inventory that is fuel combustion, manure management, agricultural soils and so on; and the way these figures are computed. [10097/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 345 to 347, inclusive, together.

The compilation and publication of the annual inventories of greenhouse gas emissions is a matter in the first instance for the Environmental Protection Agency which performs the role of inventory agency in Ireland. The inventories are calculated in accordance with the Revised 1996 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines. The Agency submits annual reports outlining the emissions results from the inventory process to the EU and to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in accordance with reporting requirements. The 2008 National Inventory Report, outlining the emissions for 2006, will be submitted to the Commission shortly and will be published by the EPA after it is submitted to the UNFCCC on 15 April. The National Inventory Report gives a description of the input data, methodologies, emission factors, quality assurance and quality control procedures and other information underlying the inventory compilation for greenhouse gases and gives details of any recalculations of inventories previously submitted.

The following are the EPA's official figures in relation to the amount of CO2 equivalent produced and absorbed by agriculture in 2006: