Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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1499. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the maximum financial cost in fines which Ireland may incur if it does not meet the European Commission requirement to reduce its emissions by 30% by 2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1149/17]

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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1500. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the amount that Ireland has paid in fines to the European Commission for failure to reach emissions targets over the past four years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1150/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1499 and 1500 together.

The Paris Agreement, which entered into force in November 2016, aims to limit global average temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-Industrial levels, with an ambition of 1.5 degrees Celsius. The Agreement is designed to meet this objective through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by all Parties to the agreement. In this regard, the European Union submitted an NDC committing to a reduction of at least 40% in EU-wide emissions by 2030 compared with 1990 levels which will be met through reductions of 43% in the Emission Trading System (ETS) and 30% in the non-ETS sector compared with 2005 levels. A proposal on the non-ETS targets for individual Member States (i.e. the effort sharing regulation) was published by the European Commission in July 2016. Targets have been proposed for Member States based on GDP which have then been adjusted to reflect cost effectiveness. Flexibilities have also been included in the Commission proposal to cover Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) and the ETS. In the case of Ireland a target of 39% has been proposed, which has been adjusted down to 30% to reflect cost-effectiveness. The Commission proposal continues to be negotiated at EU level with Member states yet to agree on final targets that will apply for the non-ETS sectors in 2030.  

In relation to the amount of fines paid to the European Commission for failure to reach emission targets over the last four years, for each year between 2013 and 2020, Ireland has a Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) emissions reduction target under the 2009 Effort Sharing Decision (ESD) No. 406/2009/EC. For the year 2020 itself, the target set for Ireland is that emissions should be 20% below their value in 2005. This is jointly the most demanding 2020 reduction target allocated under the ESD, and one shared only by Denmark and Luxembourg. The 2013 target is based on the average of emissions for the years 2008 -2010. The target for each of the years 2014 through 2019 is on a straight-line trajectory between the targets for 2013 and 2020, and surpluses in one year can be used to cover deficits in any subsequent year. The average incidence of these targets is a 12% reduction relative to 2005.

According to the latest data prepared by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and as set out in its bulletin on Ireland’s Provisional Greenhouse Gas Emissions in 2015 (November 2016), Ireland is in compliance with its annual targets under the ESD for the years 2013 and 2014. The provisional GHG emissions for 2015 indicate that Ireland will also be in compliance with its annual target under the ESD for that year. The corresponding data for 2016 is not yet available.