John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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1292. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the priority he attaches to reversing the trend of dieselisation of road transport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20284/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The trend of dieselisation of road transport is a concern to me, and to Governments all around Europe, as road transport, and diesel in particular, is a significant source of harmful emissions. Emissions from transport, including particulate emissions, can have a detrimental impact on both environmental ecosystems and human health.  Inhalation of Particulate Matter (PM) can increase respiratory morbidity (including exacerbation of existing conditions such as asthma) as well as contributing to cardiovascular disease.

A significant contributor to the rise in NOx emissions in recent years throughout the EU has been the higher than expected emissions from the new fleet of road vehicles, particularly diesel vehicles.  Over time, discrepancies have come to light between the emissions recorded from vehicles during emissions testing and ‘real’ driving.

Given the nature of both auto manufacture and the EU’s single market, a coordinated European response across all Member States is necessary.  The regulatory shortcomings highlighted by this issue are being addressed at EU level through the adoption of a revised emissions test cycle, that incorporates elements of real world driving. Ireland fully supports this approach and its early implementation. 

At a national level, in accordance with the commitment in the Programme for Government, my Department and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport are co-chairing a Low Emission Vehicles (LEV) Task Force involving relevant Government Departments and agencies. The work of the task force has been divided into two phases, with the first phase focusing solely on electric vehicles. The Task Force expects to report on an interim basis to Government on the first phase by June 2017, with associated recommendations. These recommendations will suggest a range of options for facilitating greater uptake of EVs in the coming years.

My Department has also commenced work on the first ever National Clean Air Strategy which will provide an overarching strategic policy framework within which clean air policies can be formulated and given effect in a manner consistent with national, EU and international policy considerations and priorities. The Clean Air Strategy will address priority air pollutants in Ireland, including diesel emissions, in an integrated manner. A public consultation on the strategy closed last week.

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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1293. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the consideration he has given to the beneficial health impacts of increased ethanol blending in petrol when tackling NO2 and fine particulate matter pollution; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20285/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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Vehicle emissions are a key source of negative health impacts from a range of air pollutants including nitrogen oxides (NOx) , particulate matter (PM), black carbon and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), particularly in urban areas. Though petrol and diesel road vehicles have met progressively tighter EU emission limits, known as Euro standards, since the early 1990s, increases in road traffic, changes to the ratio of diesel to petrol vehicles, questions over the efficacy of the Euro standards in real driving conditions, as well as the behaviour of some vehicle manufacturers, mean that the air pollution impact from road transport still presents a significant challenge.

The use of biofuels such as ethanol (or biodiesel for diesel cars) can help to reduce emissions, particularly carbon dioxide emissions, from road transport.  Since 1 July 2010, Ireland has operated a Biofuels Obligation Scheme which is administered by the National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA) and requires road transport fuel suppliers to bring increasing amounts of biofuel to the transport fuel market.  The obligation has been increased over the years since the beginning of the scheme, with the most recent increase bringing it to 8.695% from 1 January 2017. 

The use of biofuels is not, however, without potential drawbacks, which can include the displacement of food production, or habitat destruction for the purposes of clearing land for biofuel production.  Strict sustainability criteria must be applied to biofuels under the 2009 Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) before they can be counted towards Member State’s renewable energy targets.  Under these criteria, biofuels may not be made from raw materials originating from tropical forests or recently deforested areas, drained peatland, wetland or highly biodiverse areas. 

In addition, the European Commission adopted Directive (EU) 2015/1513 (also known as the Indirect Land-Use Change  or ILUC Directive) in September 2015. This Directive limits to 7% the amount of energy that Member States can count towards their 2020 renewable energy targets in transport from crop based biofuels whose use could lead to indirect land-use change.  It also contains incentives to encourage the development of advanced biofuels that do not affect food production. The ILUC Directive will be transposed into Irish legislation by September 2017.

It is important to ensure that the solution of any environmental problem, such as air pollution in Ireland, is not at the cost of creating a greater environmental problem elsewhere. 

I am currently developing Ireland's first ever National Clean Air Strategy to advance a coherent cross Government framework for decision making on policies and actions that can impact air quality and pollution from all sources, including road transport.  A public consultation on the Strategy closed last week.