John Cregan (Limerick West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 128: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied that the agriculture sector has played its part in reducing national emissions here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21859/10]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Irish farmers have clearly demonstrated their willingness to embrace new technologies and farming methods that are friendly to our environment. Consequently, Ireland's agriculture sector has played and will continue to play, a very significant role in reducing national emissions of greenhouse gas.

Under the Kyoto Protocol, Ireland agreed to limit our emissions to 13% above 1990 emission levels, for the Kyoto commitment period, 2008 to 2012. In that period, based on the latest projections by the EPA, emissions from the agriculture sector are expected to be, on average, 8.5% or 1.7 million tonnes CO2 equivalent, per annum, below 1990 levels. While the future pace of emission reductions will be limited by the technology available, the most recent indications are that emissions from the agriculture sector will continue to fall. It is my belief that farmers will continue to adapt and that further emissions reductions are possible, when new, cost effective technologies, to reduce emission levels, come on stream.

Under the Protocol, the emissions reductions achieved by the sector will be significantly augmented by the carbon sequestered by forests planted since 1990. Ireland's Kyoto target will reduce, by over 2 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, per annum, thanks to this land use change to forestry. Agriculture also contributes to national emissions reductions by providing a wide range of renewable fuels. Land use changes, such as increased afforestation, shifting production from food to energy crops and also the recycling of animal by products, such as meat and bone meal and tallow, all provide increasing amounts of renewable, carbon neutral fuel, that displaces fossil fuel and consequently, reduces emissions to the atmosphere.

I believe that continual, in-depth, scientific research is vital to increase our understanding of and to develop the appropriate responses to, the challenges that climate change presents. Research is also at the heart of the development of the technologies needed to further reduce emissions from the sector and I am confident that ongoing research at national level and collaborative research at international level, in areas such as the improvement of production efficiencies and increasing the carbon sink potential of soils, will yield substantial dividends for us and will deliver, for the future, effective, measurable and verifiable means to reduce or offset greenhouse gas emissions from the sector.