Research that shows grassland could act as CO2 ‘sink’ welcomed

RESEARCH carried out by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which shows that grassland could be potentially an important “sink” for carbon dioxide, has been hailed as significant by a senior office holder in the Irish Farmers’ Association.

Munster vice president Sean O’Leary said the report is based on a five-year study carried out by University College Cork and Teagasc at sites in the south-east and south-west of the country.

Mr O’Leary, who heads the IFA Climate Change Project Team, said the potential of the three million hectares of managed grassland in this country should be grasped to help in meeting our national emissions target.

Ireland’s grass-based beef and dairy production systems mean that greenhouse gas emissions per kilo of production are among the lowest in Europe.

“The results of the research from the EPA highlight the role that agriculture and grassland can play in addressing climate change.

“Our model of permanent pasture provides policymakers with a resource that can become an important element in future decisions,” he said.

Mr O’Leary said while further work has to be done to ascertain the value of other land uses, the initial results are very positive.

EPA director Laura Burke said the results show that management of Irish grassland can have an important role in addressing climate change. “The outcome of this research is an important step-up in our understanding. Ireland has more than three million hectares of managed grassland.

“If this result were replicated across this area it would amount to a considerable sink,” she said.

EPA senior scientific officer Frank McGovern said that addressing climate change is the key challenge of this century.

“There is no one solution, but the EPA considers that land management is one of the tools that could be used,” he said.