ireland still failing on climate change

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IRELAND is among the worstperforming European countries for climate action, the UN said.

The 2020 Climate Change Performance Index, launched yesterday in Madrid, shows this nation has slightly improved its position since last year.

Ireland was ranked 41 out of 57 countries, moving up from the group of “very low” to “low” performers.

In greenhouse gas emissions, Ireland ranked third from bottom for EU countries.

The report said: “Ireland’s greenhouse gas per capita emissions remain at a relatively high level and significant challenges lie ahead in closing

Ireland’s emissions gap, meeting the [current] 2030 target and aligning Ireland’s emissions trajectory with a net zero goal for 2050.

“Therefore, the country still ranks among the bottom 10 performers in this indicator.”

Campaigners have long criticised Environment Minister Richard Bruton’s policies on the climate emergency, which they say do not go far enough to tackle the issues.

Catherine Devitt from Stop Climate Chaos Coalition, said:

“Ireland’s polluting emissions remain on an upward trend.

“The Government has yet to join other member states in calling for the EU to urgently raise its ambition in line with the Paris Agreement, and the scale of 2% emissions cuts per year presented in the Government’s action plan is wholly inadequate.

“If the Government is serious about wanting to improve its reputation on climate change and to do its fair share of the global effort, there needs to be a frontloading of concrete action across all sectors to ensure the scale of reductions needed can be delivered.”

The Department of Environment has been contacted for comment.

57

How many EU countries are on Climate Change Performance Index

Zero

Ireland’s emissions target for 2050 according to the report