Without new funding and targeted support for the agriculture and industry sectors, the country’s ambitious climate targets will not be hit, an Irish dairy cooperative has said.
In a letter to An Taoiseach Simon Harris, which has been seen by Agriland, Lakeland Dairies said the government faces a “dilemma” if it doesn’t provide fresh funding to support the carbon reduction targets as part of the Climate Action Plan.
Under the plan, all sectors of the economy must reduce their collection carbon emissions by a collective 51% by 2030.
Under climate targets agreed by the government in 2021, agriculture needs to reduce its carbon emissions by 25% from its 2018 carbon figure of 23 million tonnes by 2030.
“We fully respect the climate targets set for agriculture and industry, and we recognise that addressing climate change is the defining challenge of our generation, Lakeland Dairies chair, Niall Matthews said.
“It is a critical moment, and we must all come together to achieve these goals.
“A meaningful and substantial investment in measures to support both farmers and the wider industry is vital to meet these ambitious targets.
“The current offerings are fragmented and insufficient to drive the necessary change. Without comprehensive, well-funded support, the targets will remain out of reach,” he stated.
Funding support to meet climate targets
Matthews said unless this new funding is forthcoming “it may be necessary to revisit and reconsider the carbon reduction targets” as the targets “risk becoming unattainable” which he said would “risk the entire project, via a loss in confidence and resolve to improve our environment”.
The co-op also said that momentum behind the Climate Action Plan “has slowed”.
“It is fair to say that the momentum initially created behind the Climate Action Plan has clearly slowed,” Matthews continued.
“The path forward is now evident – either commit to significant investment in support measures or reassess the feasibility of the targets.
“Without decisive action, the multi-billion-euro dairy industry which supports thousands of jobs in every rural parish in the country is at risk of being slowly suffocated by unattainable expectations,” the Co. Louth dairy farmer concluded.