Local authorities across the country have prepared Draft Climate Action Plans for 2024–2029.
Independent senator Victor Boyhan, who is a member of the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, has urged members of rural and farming communities to engage with their local authority and have a say in local Climate Actions Plans.
Many of these plans are currently open for a period of public consultation and are available to view on council websites or council offices around the country, or in county libraries.
According to the senator, these plans are “critically important” as Ireland aims to transition to a climate resilient, biodiversity rich, environmentally sustainable and climate neutral economy by the end of 2025.
Climate Action Plan
Meanwhile, the government’s overall national Climate Action Plan 2024 is the third annual update to Ireland’s Climate Action Plan.
The plan was approved by the government on December 20, 2023, subject to Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment.
According to the government, Climate Action Plan 2024 builds upon last year’s plan by refining and updating the measures and actions required to deliver the carbon budgets and sectoral emissions ceilings.
The plan provides a roadmap for taking decisive action to halve Ireland’s emissions by 2030 and reach net zero by no later than 2050, as committed to in the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021.
A public consultation on the plan is scheduled to begin early this year.
Actions
A review of maximum nitrogen (N) limits and providing options to farmers to voluntarily reduce livestock numbers are among the key measures included in Climate Action Plan 2024.
Although there is progress in key areas of the economy on reducing emissions, the document warned that there can be “no room for complacency, and that there is still a significant challenge ahead of us if we are to transition to a greener, cleaner future”.
The plan contains 26 specific measures for the agriculture sector for next year.
It also highlights key measures in relation to fertiliser, breeding and biomethane for delivery.
The plan also calls for measures in the Teagasc 2023 Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC) that can contribute to reducing emissions from nitrogen fertiliser to be incorporated into the plan.