Dozens of barriers preventing Ireland from reaching 2030 climate goals

The committee said regulatory or legislative steps must make renewable energy a condition for data centre development.

Over two dozen barriers are preventing Ireland from reaching its 2030 climate goals, with rapidly rising energy demand from data centres a significant issue, an Oireachtas committee has said.

It said reliance on private cars, inadequate infrastructure, and issues with electricity grid capacity will also hinder Ireland in reaching its goals.

The Joint Committee on Climate said it has become increasingly clear that Ireland will struggle to achieve the national objective of a 51% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, compared to 2018 levels, and that 30 separate barriers must be overcome to accelerate the progress towards this goal.

“In order to accelerate progress towards emissions reduction and meet rapidly growing needs across all sectors, the electricity network must undergo a transformative step change in development,” it said.

“The committee identifies rapidly rising demand from large energy users as a major barrier to grid availability for renewable generation and electrification, contributing to congestion and delays for other projects.” 

In a recent announcement, the Government welcomed the development of new data centres but said 80% of their electricity must come from new renewable sources. The committee said regulatory or legislative steps must make renewable energy a condition for data centre development.

It highlighted a lack of consistent and transparent cost-benefit analysis creating uncertainty around major projects.

The committee said target reductions in farming will be hugely challenging as projections, in a best-case scenario, put agriculture at less than two-thirds of its required cut in emissions.

Transport

It highlighted the reliance on private cars over other modes of transport as well as prolonged delays to major transport projects. It also pointed to “limited incentives” to expand the use of electric vehicles and no targeting of low-income and rural households, with the supports they would require.

“Expediting the delivery of infrastructure projects, such as MetroLink and the Cork Commuter Rail Programme, will be critical to achieving modal shift to the public transport network,” it said.

Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency said that Ireland was only projected to achieve a reduction of 23% in emissions compared to 2018, against a target of 51%.

Director general Laura Burke said now was the time to shift from “policy aspiration to practical implementation”.

Climate minister Darragh O’Brien, while acknowledging the project shortfalls, said Ireland has made real progress and the Government remains fully aware of the scale of the challenge as it invests billions of euro across a range of sectors.