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IFA Climate Change Project Team Chairman, Sean O'Leary has
welcomed Agriculture Minister Mary Coughlan�s recent comments
made at the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Change and
Energy Security, regarding agriculture�s contribution to emissions
reductions.
Mr. O�Leary said - �I concur with Minister Coughlan�s comments.
If significant reductions in emissions were demanded from
the agriculture sector, it would place enormous downward pressure
on cattle numbers and have a damaging consequence for our
rural community. Furthermore, reductions in emissions from
agriculture may result in less commodities - such as beef
and milk - being produced and would simply increase the carbon
footprint by transferring production elsewhere. Clearly, such
a proposal makes neither economic nor environmental sense
at a time when it is estimated that global demand for food
will increase by 50% within the next 20 years.�
The Climate Change Chairman added - �Agriculture has a definite
role to play in the climate change debate and this includes
growing carbon sequestering miscanthus, carbon neutral
electricity production through anaerobic digestion, forestry
planting and wind energy.�
Ireland�s post Kyoto objectives need to examine the sources
from which greenhouse gas emissions are growing. These include
big industries like ESB, CRH and Bord na Mona - who all received
free Carbon Credits paid for by the taxpayer, while emissions
from their sectors increased dramatically.
Sean O�Leary concluded - �Greenhouse gas emissions have grown
by 25% in Ireland since 1990, led by the transport sector,
which has increased by 163%. Emissions from the energy sector
have increased by 32% and the industrial sector by 23%. Clearly,
policy-makers have to tackle these growth areas if the fight
against climate change is to succeed.
"Agricultural emissions have reduced by 3% over the
same period. These reductions have occurred without any allocation
to agriculture by the EPA of the carbon sink, which occurs
in forestry and other land uses.�
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