Minister criticised over renewable energy targets

Minister for Energy Eamon Ryan should have been more ambitious over the setting of renewable energy targets, it was claimed today.

He was criticised by Labour’s Liz McManus over his decision to set a 33% renewable energy target for 2020 when a recent study by the all-island grid suggested he could have aimed for 42%.

Ms McManus claimed Ireland could become a world leader in renewable energy as her party demanded a more comprehensive cross-departmental government strategy on climate change.

“On behalf of the Labour Party I am calling on this minister to assert his and his government’s commitment to realising the 42% renewables in electricity production by 2020,” the Wicklow TD told a climate change forum in Dublin’s Mansion House.

“We need to invest in our grid and become world leaders in renewable energy.

“We have an abundance of renewable resources mainly along the West coast. The Grid Study proved it can be done, and it must be done.

“Ireland has the potential to harvest the best renewable energy resources in Europe – wind and tidal, as well as the potential from solar, biomass and geothermal. Wind is currently our biggest renewable resource, accounting for 60% of the renewable electricity generated.

“We have some of the most impressive wind resources in the world yet they remain largely undeveloped. The Government must develop potential offshore wind.

“Offshore wind is now recognised throughout Europe as the one clean renewable power source that is capable of delivering capacity close to that of fossil-fuel based generation.

“Ocean energy, both wave and tidal energy will have a role to play in meeting longer term targets in Ireland. The resource, particularly in wave energy, is vast.”

Ms McManus said anyone who visited the west of Ireland coast could see how rich the capacity was for wave energy.

Ireland, she also argued, could also benefit from investment in geothermal energy technologies – extracting energy stored in the form of heat beneath the surface of the earth.

The Labour Party’s Communications, Energy and Natural Resources spokeswoman said her party believed a more cohesive strategy was needed from government.

“Ireland needs to become more efficient in its use of energy,” the Wicklow TD said.

“We need to lower our greenhouse gas emissions, drawing on a mix of low carbon energy sources. We need to promote domestic energy efficiency.

“Lower energy consumption generally means both lower CO2 emissions and less expense on electricity, gas and fuel.

“A cross departmental approach is essential. No one minister can tackle climate change alone.

“Instead an integrated approach driven by the Taoiseach is what is called for.

“What we have is a leader of government who rarely, if ever, speaks about climate change. We have a weak Cabinet Sub Committee that has only met three times since the last General Election.

“Our purpose here today is to present the model for how climate change can be tackled in a coherent way.”