Under-resourcing of councils is compromising country's climate targets, Government told

Climate Change Advisory Council chairwoman Marie Donnelly issued the advice in a letter to the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, and the Environment Minister. File picture: Fennell Photography

A lack of resources for local authorities to address planning issues is compromising Ireland’s ability to meet steep de-carbonisation targets, the State’s climate watchdog has warned.

The warning from the Climate Change Advisory Council (CCAC) comes as Cork’s city councillors voted to change the less-than-year-old city development plan to allow more parking in certain areas despite concerns that it could weaken the 15-minute city concept and undermine Cork’s efforts to become climate neutral by the end of the decade.

In a letter to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Tánaiste Micheál Martin, and Environment Minister Eamon Ryan, the CCAC said addressing the “historic and structural underfunding” within the planning system needs to be addressed if Ireland is to meet its climate ambitions.

It has also outlined “crucial” silos that need to be addressed this year and said it “strongly supports an urgent increase in staffing in local authority planning offices to help effectively deliver national climate policy”.

Climate Change Advisory Council chairwoman Marie Donnelly said: “The planning system is at the heart of meeting our legislated carbon budgets, particularly for electricity, heat and transport. 

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It is crucial that planning policy gaps are addressed quickly to give greater local policy support. That relates to onshore renewable energy projects and compact growth.

The CCAC also said it is vital that new homes are predominantly located in multi-unit developments within easy reach of existing services including transport, health, education, and retail, and not in one-off sites.

In Cork, Green Party councillor Dan Boyle criticised the city council’s vote on Monday to alter the city development plan and relax the city’s minimum parking standards.

He said the development plan, which came into effect last August, contained principles to achieve a better balance in transport modes in a city where 75% of all journeys are by private car, less than 10% by public transport, and 1% by bike.

“Increasing car parking capacity from what we intended when we passed the plan will send out the wrong signals,” he said. “We feel it’s a move in the wrong direction.

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“If we have the ambition, if we are to achieve the change, this is not the type of signal we should be sending out.”

However, councillors were told the standards will undergo annual reviews which will allow for future reductions to the parking standards as public transport improvements are delivered.