The Oireachtas all-party committee on climate action will make recommendations that recognise Irish agriculture’s carbon efficiency and large place in the economy while seeking support from and for farmers, Hildegarde Naughton TD told the Climate Challenge conference in Dublin City University this Friday.
The Oireachtas all-party committee on climate action will make recommendations that recognise Irish agriculture’s carbon efficiency and large place in the economy while seeking support from and for farmers, Hildegarde Naughton TD told the Climate Challenge conference in Dublin City University this Friday.
"The task in the next phase of our agricultural development will be to lower emissions while maintaining and improving food productivity levels and diversifying production,” she said.
This must be done “in a way that both protects and enhances the agricultural sector,” she added.
Tackling emissions
The chair of the committee said that all sectors must play their role in tackling greenhouse gas emissions, but she acknowledged that “technical solutions are more difficult” for farming and “we already have one of the most carbon-efficient dairy and beef production [systems] in Europe”.
The committee will also recommend increasing the existing carbon tax on fossil fuels, Deputy Naughton said.
The corresponding revenue should be spent on climate action or returned to the people, she added, with particular attention paid to those at risk of fuel poverty or in rural areas.
The committee will submit its final report at the end of this month.
Read more in next week’s Irish Farmers Journal.
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