Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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58. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the amount likely to be paid by Ireland due to missing carbon emission targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21494/17]

Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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67. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the estimated costs of fines he expects Ireland to incur based on current projections of the failure to reach emissions targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21497/17]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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82. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources his plans to ensure Ireland is not fined for failing to reach targets for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21822/17]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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585. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the way in which his Department is planning for the possibility of up to €5.5 billion in fines in 2030 if the State does not meet its climate targets (details supplied); the way in which his Department has been liaising with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in relation to same, particularly with reference to the national mitigation plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18968/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 58, 67, 82 and 585 together.

The release of the latest projections of greenhouse gas emissions by the Environmental Protection Agency on 13 April last clearly indicated the enormous challenge facing Ireland to reduce its emissions. The projections indicate that emissions from those sectors of the economy not covered by the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) could be between 4% and 6% below 2005 levels by 2020, a deteriorating position in respect of the achievement of Ireland’s targets for 2020 when compared with previous projections. Though not unexpected, given the welcome return to economic growth in Ireland, it nevertheless confirms that Ireland’s greenhouse emissions continue to track broader trends in the economy and serves to underline the difficult decisions ahead of us as we try to reduce emissions in line with our international commitments.

In relation to the targets for 2020, Ireland has an emissions reduction target for each year between 2013 and 2020 under the 2009 EU Effort Sharing Decision. For the year 2020 itself, the target set for Ireland is that emissions should be 20% below their level in 2005. This will be Ireland’s contribution to the overall EU objective to reduce its emissions by the order of 20% by 2020 compared to 1990 levels. Ireland’s target is jointly the most demanding 2020 reduction target allocated to EU Member States under this Decision, which is shared only with Denmark and Luxembourg. 

The projected shortfall to our targets in 2020 reflects both the constrained investment capacity over the past decade due to the economic crisis, and the extremely challenging nature of the target itself. In fact, it is now accepted that Ireland’s 2020 target was misinformed and not consistent with what would be achievable on an EU wide cost-effective basis.

In order to maximise Ireland's emissions reductions and address the gap to the 2020 target, it will also be necessary to pursue other available options, in addition to the introduction of further policies and measures planned through the National Mitigation Plan.

The legislative framework governing the EU’s 2020 emissions reductions targets includes a number of flexibility mechanisms to enable Member States to meet their annual emissions targets, including provisions to bank any excess allowances to future years and to trade allowances between Member States. Ireland expects to make use of both of these mechanisms in meeting our compliance obligations. In relation to likely costs that Ireland will incur, this would arise in the context of a possible requirement to purchase additional allowances to meet our annual compliance requirements. At this stage, it is not possible to accurately quantify the potential cost of such purchases as this will depend on both the volume of purchases required and the price of allowances to be purchased.

In relation to 2030, I do not accept the contention in Deputy Martin's Question in relation to the scale of costs related to failure to meet Ireland’s 2030 targets as these targets have not yet been agreed. I would, however, note that while the scale of investment required in order to help Ireland meet these targets will be significantly in excess of current levels of expenditure, such productive investment in our economy will contribute to sustainable economic growth and job creation over the next decade and beyond.