Letters to the Editor: Emissions targets should be based on up-to-date IPCC reports 

The 2022 reports call for the elimination or dramatic reduction of emissions from most sectors by 2050

A reader says the previous government's emissions reduction strategy was based on a 2018 report which has since been superseded. Picture: Rui Vieira/PA

I was encouraged to see the programme for government has a commitment to follow the guidelines from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on biogenic methane when setting our targets for emissions. However, I regret to have to point out that the last government’s Strategy for Emissions Reduction 2024, produced by Eamon Ryan’s department, did not follow the IPCC guidelines available at that time.

By mistake or by design, they claimed the targets were based on an IPCC 2023 document when they were in fact quoting from a 2018 document which had been superseded by much more comprehensive information in IPCC reports from 2022.