Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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212. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he has engaged with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform in respect of the role of sustainability officers in the civil service. [56942/21]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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In my roles as Minister for Transport and Minister for the Environment Climate and Communications, I engage with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform on a range of sustainability practices across the public service on an ongoing basis.

With regard to sustainability officers, the Department of Transport participates in the cross-departmental steering group established under the Public Sector Energy Efficiency Strategy co-ordinated by the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications. This led to the establishment of a dedicated Green Team in the Department of Transport in 2019 to implement sustainable practices in the organisation, aligned with the goals and targets identified in our organisation’s Resource Efficiency Action Plans. The Green Team, which consists of volunteer representatives from management and staff, will continue to work closely with Facilities Management to move towards ensuring that our buildings become carbon neutral. These structures have proven to be effective, and I will continue to support such measures both within my Departments and Service-wide.