McConalogue says no farmer will be 'forced to cut herd'

The targets were announced by Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue following talks on how much farmers should have to contribute to climate-change measures.

Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue has said there will be no instructions issued to farmers to cut Ireland's national herd to meet the emissions targets. 

After agreeing to set the emissions cuts target at 25% for the argricultural sector by 2030, Mr McConalogue today said that the national herd will remain 'stable' in the coming years. 

He has suggested that farmers reduce emissions by selling off land for solar energy or forestry instead. 

"No farmer will be forced to cut his herd, we are encouraging farmers to do more forestry, and I think we will see more of it in the years ahead, also we are encouraging farmers to do biomethane production," Mr McConalogue said. 

The overall greenhouse gas reduction targets set down by the Government fall short of the 51% cut required by 2030 under the law.

Tim Cullinan, the President of the Irish Farmers Association, has called for common sense in plans to reduce emissions. 

He said the deal is "all about the survival of the Goverment rather than the survival of rural Ireland."

The targets were announced by Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue following talks on how much farmers should have to contribute to climate-change measures.

Mr Ryan had stressed the need for all sectors to meet the upper end of the bands set down in the Climate Act last year, but transport is the only area that has been asked to reduce its emissions by the top projection of 50%.

No target has been agreed for "land use, land use change, and forestry," with this decision kicked down the road for another 18 months to allow for the completion of the land-use strategy. This will assess the latest developments in scientific knowledge relating to the sector’s emissions.

The electricity sector will be asked to reduce carbon emissions by 75% by 2030, considerably less than the upper target of 81% set down under the Climate Act.

It means the targets do not equate to the legally binding 51% reduction requirement and are five megatonnes short of the amount needed, which the Government hopes can be found through change in land use and new technologies.

The Government last night faced criticism over the targets, with farm groups reacting with dismay to the target of 25% which has been now been set for agriculture.

Climate action groups and opposition parties also slammed the plan, claiming the climbdown from the higher 30% limit for agriculture shows the coalition is not capable of making the tough decisions required to combat climate change.

However, Fianna Fáil’s Barry Cowen criticised the fact that these measures will both be counted as energy reductions and will not go towards the 25% cut needed from agriculture.

Social Democrats climate spokeswoman Jennifer Whitmore said the 25% cut in carbon emissions for agriculture represents “a shocking failure” by Government to listen to the science.

“This deal clearly demonstrates Government is not prepared to, or capable of, making the tough decisions required to deal with climate change,” she said.

People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith said it was an “enormous blow to the climate goals and environmental movement in this country” and “represented a victory by big agri-food business interests who have profited enormously from the current model”.