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IFA Say Productive Farmers Will 'Become Unviable' Under New Climate Plan

Tuesday, 26 October 2021 06:55

A programme has been released to cut Ireland's greenhouse emission in half in ten years.

An expert government committee has released a programme to cut Ireland's greenhouse emissions in half inside a decade. 

The government plans to make the two five-year carbon budgets legally binding within the next four months. 

The first five-year budget will require cuts of 4.8% a year compared with emissions in 2018. 

After 2025, a second budget is to kick in, with a yearly reduction of 8.4% planned. 

As things stand, 54% of Irish greenhouse gas emissions come from energy and under 5% from industry. 

Close to a third is generated by farming -- more than three times the EU average of 11%. 

The council says in order to meet the goals, between 600-thousand and 1.5 million battery electric vehicles would have to replace petrol and diesel cars by 2030. 

The reports says proposals by Teagasc to cut agricultural emissions without reducing livestock numbers would not be enough for even its less ambitious forecasts for the sector. 

It says a cut of just one-third to farming pollution would demand 200-thousand fewer dairy cows. 

Marie Donnelly, chair of the Climate Change Advisory Council, says action to cut emissions is now becoming urgent. 

Climate Action Minister Eamon Ryan says the reductions will be "challenging" and will require "fundamental changes in many parts of Irish life". 

He says he intends to publish sector-by-sector plans -- and to have the carbon budgets ratified by the Oireachtas within four months. 

IFA President Tim Cullinan said the carbon budget staging announced by the Climate Change Advisory Council today, and the sectoral emissions ceilings reported, will have serious repercussions for farming.

“Our most productive farmers simply cannot remain viable if agriculture has to reduce emissions by between 21% and 30% as has been reported. This will have profound implications for the rural economy,

“Some may compare the carbon budget, and the sectoral ceilings that had been proposed, to other sectors and think agriculture has got a fair deal, but the Government has not considered the implications for individual farmers and the sector,

“For most people, climate action will impact on their lifestyle. For farmers, it will impact on our livelihoods. It’s also important to realise that increases in the cost of energy and transport fuel are already impacting on the viability of farms and rural businesses.

“The Government must now engage in meaningful negotiation with farmers to make a plan for the sector that can contribute to emissions reduction, but which does not impact on farmer’s livelihoods. In addition, proper funding must be in place to help farmers implement climate action measures.

The frustration for farmers is that they know that if less food is produced in Ireland, it will be produced elsewhere, with a higher carbon footprint. The world’s population is growing and is likely to increase from 7.5 billion today to 10 billion by 2050. More food will be needed, not less,

There is a huge amount of misinformation out there. Ireland’s grass-based system is extremely efficient. The Government must support farmers, not regulate them out of business.

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