Hike carbon tax and ban burning coal and peat..
experts plea to cut emissions and help tackle climate change
IRELAND’S carbon tax should be hiked and the burning of coal and peat ended to help cut emissions, experts urged yesterday.
The independent Climate Change Advisory Council added we are not on track to meet 2020 targets or to decarbonise the economy by 2050.
Data also showed greenhouse gas emissions increased by 3.7% in 2015.
Chairman Prof John Fitzgerald said: “There is an urgent requirement for new policies, and action beyond what is committed to in the National Mitigation Plan if Ireland is to reduce emissions by 2020 and to move on to a sustainable path to 2050 to tackle climate change.”
The council added the pace and scale of greenhouse gas reductions needed to be accelerated across all sectors of the Irish economy.
And it recommended a substantial increase in the carbon tax.
That levy has collected more than €2billion in revenue since it was introduced in Budget 2010 and is due to be reviewed.
Other recommendations included phasing out the use of coal and peat for residential heating and power supplies, ending the subsidy for peat-fired electricity generation.
It urged the Government to invest in public transport fleets, incentivise the take-up of electric vehicles and improve planning to minimise commuting. The council is assessing Ireland’s progress on the long-term low-carbon transition by 2050 and advising Government on measures to take.
While the review found some progress had been made in the built environment and the energy sectors, Prof Fitzgerald said the country was still over-reliant on fossil fuels. It has the third highest per capita emissions for residential use, including the UK, reflecting its high reliance on oil, coal and peat.
The academic added: “This has significant implications for both greenhouse gas emissions and air quality, and it has significant negative impacts on health.
“A medium-term strategy to phase out fossil fuels in the electricity, transport and residential sectors is required.”